


Dark Intervention

by keirajo



Series: The Decepticon Emperor and His Autobot Lover [2]
Category: Transformers Generation One
Genre: Action/Adventure, Angst, Angst and Hurt/Comfort, Awkward Romance, Battle, Drama, Implied/Referenced Rape/Non-con, M/M, Rape/Non-con Elements, Surgery, biological reconstruction
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-09-16
Updated: 2018-10-01
Packaged: 2019-07-13 02:59:19
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Rape/Non-Con
Chapters: 6
Words: 20,690
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16008872
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/keirajo/pseuds/keirajo
Summary: Hot Rod is having a bad week.........too many things keep happening, triggering his anxiety--even though he and Galvatron have finally come to terms with their relationship now.  Raj-ur-Malekk returns with a new force and a powerful new ally.   And with the way things are going, at this point, Galvatron just may wind up destroying the universe.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> If you haven't read the last chapter of the "A Day in the Life......" 'fic, I recommend reading it before you start to read this one. :)

**_ Dark Intervention _ **

 

 

_ Chapter One: _

 

            Hot Rod was _not_ having a good day.   And it was **_not_** the start of a good week.  Normally, he wouldn’t _ever_ mind getting a call from Ultra Magnus—sometimes he missed the other Autobots on Cybertron and Earth, but overall, he was actually _happy_ on Chaar.  Especially with the fact that he and Galvatron had _finally_ overcome things that made times awkward between them the past six months he’d been on Chaar.  Spark-bonding with the mech he loved just recently was _really nice_ and he was glad it happened—it ended the awkward dancing around each other.

            But _this particular call_ from Ultra Magnus was………….bringing unpleasant news with it.

            “ _What?_   I have _no time_ for this, Magnus!”  Hot Rod groaned, looking over from his work monitor over at the intercom screen on his desk.  “Does Optimus just not understand the accords or is he being stubborn?”  He asked, resting his head on a servo he propped up on to the desktop.

            “It’s a little of both, I think,” the Autobot’s Second-in-Command responded.  “He seems to be under the impression that you’re being held hostage on the part of the accords.”

            The flame-colored mech groaned deeply, burying his face in his servos.   How did Optimus Prime come to _that conclusion_?   How could he possibly ignore the pure needy possessiveness that Galvatron displayed back on Earth………or the fact that there’s a sparkling that belonged to the Decepticon Leader and the former Autobot Leader known as Rodimus Prime?

            “Held hostage?  _Primus_ , Magnus………..while I don’t mind a bit of bondage in the berth— ** _for fun_** , mind you—I am absolutely here of my own free will!”  Hot Rod said, frustrated, as he turned his optics back to the intercom screen.

            “You could always put off speaking to him directly, saying you need to spend some time with Daniel—since he’s off from school right now and wants to visit with you and Novablaze,” Ultra Magnus responded, softly.

            “I can’t do that forever…………and I can’t possibly let him wander Chaar in the meantime—because _that_ will seriously piss Galvatron off!”  The flame-colored mech sighed, facepalming himself.  He couldn’t possibly let Optimus Prime and Galvatron confront each other in _any way_ , or else he’d find himself desperately trying to defuse the ignition of a new war.

            After all, as far as Galvatron cared………… _Optimus Prime_ was the reason that Rodimus Prime was “ _gone_ ”—so, the Decepticon Leader had absolutely no love for the former Autobot Leader who was now the Leader of the Autobots once again.   And knowing that Optimus Prime clearly wasn’t trying to understand the nature of the accords—he could see _those two_ getting in a massive fight and dragging the Transformer race back into war.  Hot Rod _didn’t_ want that……………and he knew no one else did, either.

            Galvatron may not actually care one way or another, but the _Decepticons_ had benefitted from the “ _peace_ ” that had come with the ceasefire accords.   The _Autobots_ were happy that they weren’t fending off the Decepticons from the universe at large.   The _Constructicons_ were happy to build things……….instead of wreck things and patch things up as best as they could—Hook could _finally_ pursue his medical career and First Aid had been happy to share all medical knowledge with the Constructicon.

            Why couldn’t Optimus Prime _understand everything_ that Hot Rod had done as Rodimus Prime?   Not _just_ the ceasefire accords, but having the Autobots join the Galactic Alliance was an amazing benefit as well!  The young, flame-colored mech hoped that Optimus’ famous stubbornness wasn’t ruining things with the Galactic Alliance as well……………

            “I understand why Galvatron thinks that, but…………..you _did_ explain everything about the hate plague incident, haven’t you?”  Ultra Magnus asked, when Hot Rod had made the comment about what Galvatron currently thought about Optimus Prime.

            Hot Rod smiled wryly as he looked at his former Second on the intercom screen.  “And just how easy do you think it is to convince my dear Emperor of something, once he has a specific thought in his head?”  The flame-colored mech laughed softly.

            “Point taken,” the red-white-blue mech chuckled.  “So, what do you plan to do, then?”   He asked.

            “I think that what I’ll do is………….I’ll have my admin staff show Optimus and whomever’s with him around the embassy, while I chat with Danny for a little bit.  Brainstorm’s amazing and Carnivac is very charming,” Hot Rod explained, tapping a finger on his desk, lightly.  “Then I’ll settle down and have a long chat with Optimus Prime.”

            “Good luck, then, Hot Rod,” Ultra Magnus responded, nodding gently.

            “Thanks, Magnus,” Hot Rod said, grinning at his former Second.

            After ending the call, the flame-colored mech got up and paced his office for a few moments before finally sending a glyph message to Galvatron.   He asked if his lover had a few moments to come and see him.   The Decepticon Leader was there in **_less_** than five minutes.

            “Is this a quick frag?”  Galvatron chuckled as Hot Rod snuggled up against his chest happily.

            “Under almost any other circumstance, I’d _love_ that—but not with Nova in the room, my lord,” the flame-colored mech responded, tilting his head in the direction of the nearby couch—where their youngling was deep in a nap-cycle.

            “This call from you is something serious, then?”  The Decepticon Leader asked, digging his claws into the small, luscious aft of his young Autobot lover.

            “So, _this happened_.  Magnus just called to tell me that Optimus won’t accept any rational explanations for the accords……………and he’s on his way here to make sure I’m not being held hostage by the _‘evil Decepticons’_ ,” Hot Rod groaned, leaning the right side of his faceplate on Galvatron’s chest.

            “I will blast his ship out of the skies before it can land!”  Galvatron growled sharply, his annoyance beginning to rise.

            Hot Rod smiled at his lover’s ferocity and odd sense of protectiveness.   “You’re within your rights to do so, but…………I’d _like_ to keep the accords intact.   You know how much they mean to me.  And…….I guess I have to be the one to seriously get Optimus Prime to _understand_ them,” he answered, softly.   Ah, but he wished the two of them had time and a room for a nice fun few hours of fragging right now!   “I’ll keep Optimus and whomever is with him in the embassy and won’t let them set foot on Chaar, otherwise.  Can you avoid coming to the embassy here for a while?  Unless I call for you, I guess…….?”  Hot Rod asked, pulling away a little bit so he could look up into his lover’s faceplate.

            Galvatron _knew_ how hard Rodimus Prime—and now, his young Autobot lover as Hot Rod once more—wanted the accords.  _Everything he did_ …………..to make life better for not just the Autobots, but for the Decepticons as well.   The accords were the _greatest thing_ that his Prime ever forged—until the two of them forged Novablaze together.

            “ _Nnngh_.  Very well, my Prime—I expect a _special reward_ for this,” the grey-and-purple mech growled.

            “Of course, my Emperor—but, Primus………..I’d _so_ love to frag right now, though!”  Hot Rod chuckled warmly.

            “Clearly we shall have to wait for another time—then, perhaps, we shall see just _how much weight_ your desk can endure,” Galvatron purred, bending down for a very wet kiss, complete with dueling glossa.   He pulled away right before Hot Rod could surrender and open up for him.  The Decepticon Leader smiled as he saw his little lover panting from the intensity of the kiss.  “My little Novablaze looks very pleased in his nap-cycle,” he added, to distract Hot Rod from veering into potentially dangerous territory.

            “Naps are _awesome things_ —I, personally, love nap-cycles after a circuit-frying overload myself,” Hot Rod chuckled softly, pulling Galvatron’s head down for another searing round of glossa-dueling kissing.   “And…….if I _don’t_ let you go now—we really _will_ wind up fragging,” he sighed, finally pushing on Galvatron’s chest, to get him to go away.

            “This is true.   If you do wish me to ensure that Optimus leaves immediately—please call for me, my sexy little Prime,” the grey-and-purple mech chuckled, gently grabbing the lithe little mech’s aft again, before he turned away and left the room.

            Hot Rod incycled a deep breath………and exvented sharply.   Now it was time to psych himself up to talk to the Autobot Leader, whom he once admired……………but who practically never even acknowledged his existence.

 

*      *      *      *      *

 

            “Welcome to the Autobot Embassy in the center of the Decepticon Empire, here on the planet of Chaar,” Hot Rod greeted with formality and a dip of his shoulders.

            Novablaze was shyly hiding behind his carrier’s left leg.

            “Sky Lynx—I am afraid I must ask you to remain grounded in your shuttle mode right now, is that all right?”  The flame-colored mech asked, gazing at the large Autobot sentient shuttle.

            “I suppose that I shall take this opportunity for a light recharge cycle, then,” Sky Lynx responded dryly.

            “Optimus Prime, Kup—I will allow Carnivac and Brainstorm to show you around the embassy for the next hour.   I will take that time to speak with Daniel, especially for Nova’s sake—as my sparkling quite likes my human little brother,” Hot Rod said, firmly.

            Optimus looked about to say something, when Brainstorm immediately took charge and started to lead the two Autobot guests off into the depths of the embassy building.

            “Hey, Nova—I have something for you!”  Daniel called, pulling a huge stuffed animal from behind his back.

            “ ** _Doggie_**!!”  Novablaze squealed upon seeing the round form of the Shiba Inu character from “ _Fuzzy Fiesta_ ”.  The youngling dashed over to the teenage boy—now just a little bit taller than him—and took the plush into his servos.  “Thank you……….” the youngling said, softly, as he hugged the big round dog plush happily.

            “You’re welcome, Nova,” Daniel said with a big smile, as he reached over and fondly rubbed Novablaze’s helm.

            “You’re _totally_ spoiling my sparkling, Danny!”  Hot Rod laughed as they all went to the recreation room together.

            “Hey, I’m his favorite uncle—right?  It’s my familial duty to totally spoil my nephew!”  Daniel laughed, climbing up onto the couch, to sit next to his Autobot “ _big brother_ ”.

            Novablaze sat down on the floor in front of them, with some of his toys, setting the large ball-shaped Shiba Inu plush beside him.   The youngling made a little maze-like track outlined with his blocks and then drove a little car through the patterns of space, making little car sounds.

            “Gosh, he is still _utterly adorable_ , big bro!”  Daniel chuckled, watching the youngling play.  “How long do you think he’ll be little?”  The teenage boy asked.

            “First Aid, Hook and Bonecrusher think that he’ll have a pretty similar growth rate to an Earth child.  He’s two right now, almost three—and he’s still in that _‘toddler’_ stage.  So, we’ll have to wait for sure, but it’s looking like he’ll be young for a while yet,” Hot Rod answered seriously.  “I’m fine with that, I like him the way he is and I’m looking forward to watching him grow.  I think I’ve made a good carrier…………and Galvatron’s made a fine sire,” he added, fondly.

            “By the way—I also got some more DVD sets for you…………up to the most current _‘Fuzzy Fiesta’_ season that’s on DVD.  So, season twenty-six,” Daniel said, pulling a mass of DVD box sets out of his duffel bag.  Sixteen of them, to be precise!

            The teenage boy had brought a large backpack and a duffel bag with him to Chaar.   It intrigued Hot Rod as to why Daniel would bring so much for just a few hours’ visit, really—but if he was bringing goodies, then it made a lot more sense!   Novablaze had looked up at them when he heard “ _Fuzzy Fiesta_ ” from Daniel’s lips and his optics glowed bright with eagerness, making the deep blue of the glass over his optic orbs luminescent.   The teenager leaned down over the front of the couch and handed season twenty-six to the youngling.

            “Can you use the DVD player, Nova?”  Daniel asked.

            “ _Yes!_    Thank you!”  Novablaze said, excitedly.  He carefully took the first disc out of the case and put it in the DVD player.

            “ _Low volume_ , Nova—Danny and I are talking.  You can play it louder when you watch it with the Terrorcons, later,” Hot Rod said, firmly, to his sparkling.

            “Yes, cari!”  Novablaze said cheerfully.  He sat down near the speaker and stared up at the screen, cradling his new plush in his lap.

            “Got the Terrorcons addicted, did we?”  Daniel chuckled.

            “They’re not so different than the Dinobots, really—and they _love_ singing along with the songs,” Hot Rod responded with a huge grin.  “So, what’re all those bags for, Danny?”  He asked, pointing at the backpack and the duffel.

            “Oh!  Amber and I went to an anime ‘con together!  I brought some of my haul to show you!”  Daniel laughed, starting to pull stuff from both the backpack and the duffel bag.   “I got the Shiba Inu plushie from the convention, too.”

            Daniel showed him some manga and DVDs of a series that he and his girlfriend were really big into right now.   He explained how wildly popular it was, too—with tons of merchandise even easily available in America, not just via importing from Japan.   And it _wasn’t_ popular with _just boys_ or _just girls_ —it was popular with **_all ages and genders_**.

            “It’s a high school drama with vampires and werewolves?  Primus, that sounds like one of those awful young adult romance books!”  Hot Rod groaned when Daniel explained about the series.

            “I know, _I know_ …………but it’s _actually_ pretty cool.  The next anime ‘con we go to—we’re gonna cosplay as characters from it,” the teenage boy said, grinning up at his “ _big brother_ ”.

            “ _Cosplay_?”  The flame-colored mech echoed.

            “Dress-up—it’s short for ‘ _costume play’_ ,” Daniel responded.  “It’s like a huge thing to do at all these nerdy conventions.”   Then the teenage boy stood up on the couch and unrolled a long, sheet-like thing.

            Hot Rod’s optics brightened in surprise, then he glanced at Novablaze to make sure the television still had the youngling’s attention, before waggling a chiding finger at the teenage boy.  “Daniel Witwicky…….I think I’ve seen enough of your _weird_ television shows to know that **_that_** animated female on that sheet-thing is practically naked and her front side is far too big for gravity not to make her into a hunchback!   What is your mom gonna say?”  The Autobot groaned quietly at his “ _little brother_ ”.

            “It’s a _dakimakiura_ —a pillow cover for a body pillow.  Daki are supposed to be _‘sexy’_ ,” Daniel chuckled, neatly folding it back up and stuck it back into the backpack.  “I’m sure dad will vocally pitch a fit on behalf of mom, but he’ll privately praise his son for growing up with good taste.  I don’t think mom’ll complain like dad thinks she will, either.”

            Then the teenage boy showed off a few more things and finally sat down.  He looked at his smartphone for the time—and praised the added chips that Perceptor installed so he could get service on Athenia—though it looked like he actually got some minimal kind of service on Chaar, as well.

            “It looks like we’ve only got about ten minutes left before you have to go _be professional_ , big bro—want me to stay down here and watch Nova while you talk to Optimus Prime?”  Daniel asked, looking up at Hot Rod.

            “Yeah, I really appreciate that, Danny,” the flame-colored mech said, grinning down at his human “little brother”.

            “How’re you doing lately?  I mean— _besides_ all the stuff you i-mailed me about,” Daniel asked, curiously.

            “I keep myself busy, mostly.  I might have a small viral strain—purged a few times the past couple mornings, but I feel pretty good otherwise.  So, I don’t want to bother Hook if it’s actually nothing but stress,” Hot Rod said with a big sigh.

            “Purged, _hunh_?”  Daniel murmured, looking up at the flame-colored mech and then down over at Novablaze.  “Are you sparked up again?”  He asked.  “Because isn’t this _exactly_ what happened before?”

            Hot Rod stared at Daniel in total surprise.  “Oh, but that’s _not_ possible.  The reformatted body the Matrix gave me was what allowed for that to happen before………” he mumbled, softly.

            “Well, if you say so, big bro—but honestly, the Matrix could’ve left your internal reformatting permanent,” Daniel said with a shrug.  “Plus you i-mailed me that you and Galvatron had Spark-bonded again…….and _that_ seems to be the trigger for it to happen, besides you two guys’ unique internal protocols.”

            “It’d be kinda cool if it _were_ true— ** _I_** wouldn’t mind doing it again, honestly.  But…….I don’t think it’s possible without the Matrix and my reformatted body to even invite a second miracle to happen,” Hot Rod said, chuckling softly.

 

*      *      *      *      *

 

            “Are you _serious_?   Don’t give me this, Optimus!”  Hot Rod groaned, digging the heels of his servos into his optical valleys, as if that would ease all of his stresses right now.  “Look, you paid practically no attention to me when I was under your command back then…………and now you suddenly think you know all my personal feelings on things.  _I have a sparkling with Galvatron_ —that’s **_not_** something that was forced upon me, the Matrix would **_never_** have allowed that to happen if I were unwilling!”

            “It would not be the first time a young Autobot had been deceived by a Leader of the Decepticons,” the former-and-again Autobot Leader said, very calmly.

            Was Optimus Prime just hearing _only_ the things he wanted to hear?   Why was he _not_ getting this?!

            “How could I be _deceived_?!  Galvatron may be the Spawn of the Pit half the time, but he is _not_ deceptive at all.  He’s actually the most ridiculously straightforward mech I’ve ever met in my life!”  The flame-colored mech snapped, getting extremely upset that he wasn’t getting through to Optimus Prime that he was in love with Galvatron and here of his own free will—and to promote the ceasefire accords!   “Oh, but _that’s it_ —isn’t it?  _You_ Spark-bonded to Megatron………….and either you’re regretting it nowadays or you’re here to actually take Galvatron away from me, because he used to be Megatron!”  Hot Rod growled, sharply.

            “That is _not_ true!  I’m……..!”  Optimus Prime countered, the pitch in his vocalizer surprisingly rising.

            “Lad………..Optimus—come on, let’s cool our fans here,” Kup said, soothingly, holding gentle servos out towards both Autobots.

            “ _Kup!_    You _know_ how hard I’ve worked for these accords!  _Everybody knows!_   And Novablaze’s very existence shows just how I feel about Galvatron!”  Hot Rod cried, his anxiety and stress levels increasing rapidly.  “Optimus……….you have _no right_ to come here and confront me like this when you barely ever spoke to me before!”

            All of the sudden, the double doors to the conference room slammed open and rocked dangerously on their hinges, on the edge of collapse.

            “ ** _Prime!_**    The fleshling you like so much told me that you have been hiding a condition from me!  And now I am getting a heated boiling of emotions through our Spark-bond.   _What in the Pit is going on_?!”  Galvatron thundered, standing near the doors with his arms crossed furiously.

            Hot Rod stared at Galvatron, a strange mix of shame and longing surging through his systems.  It was at that point that all of his anxiety and stress finally overwhelmed him.  The young, flame-colored mech shoved the chair he was sitting in back from the conference table and purged heavily onto the floor, coughing roughly afterwards.

            _‘This **can’t** be………my body’s not………..I **can’t** ………..’_ Hot Rod thought wildly, his insides a twisted knot to match his emotions.

            “ _Out._   The **_both_** of you.  Or despite my little Prime’s protests—I promise I will melt you both down into slag,” Galvatron threatened, immediate danger in his vocalizer.  “You all have _not appreciated_ him as I do—and the only reason I have not thwarted the accords myself is that I wholly understand how hard my Prime has worked to keep them and improve upon them,” he growled, thrusting the arm with his nova cannon at both Optimus Prime and Kup.  He kept it aimed at them as he slowly walked over to Hot Rod.

            Kup grumbled under his breath and dragged the Autobot Leader out of the room with him.  Daniel was at the end of the hallway, standing with Novablaze.  The teenage boy shrugged at both of them and walked past, holding onto Nova’s hand, until the two of them came to a halt just inside of the room.  Galvatron glared back at them and then sighed.

            “Close the doors, human,” Galvatron commanded, gently.

            “They…………they may not close completely, Galvatron—they look broken,” Daniel said, shoving a footstool over to the wall with the door release panel.

            “Do what you can………..and the both of you stay back, right now,” Galvatron snapped, his attention fully focused on Hot Rod.

            Daniel climbed up onto the footstool and reached up to hit the door release panel—he had to hit the button _four times_ before the doors finally closed, complete with cracks along the seals.  Novablaze stood on the floor beside the footstool, hugging his new plush tightly as he worried for his carrier.

            “My little Prime, look up at me,” Galvatron commanded firmly, swiping a finger under Hot Rod’s chin, rather than forcing his gaze up by grabbing his chin (as he usually did).   He could tell that it was a precarious situation—his young Prime’s anxiety had been seriously triggered again and it made his self-hatred grow.  Galvatron **_never_** liked his Prime when he was full of anxiety like this, it was difficult to calm him down—and the Decepticon Leader was simply not very good at dealing with these kinds of emotions.

            “ _No_.  I’m so _awful._   Threw a tantrum so stupidly.  Got jealous and upset……..” the flame-colored mech sobbed in anguish.  “And I……..how can I be?   I _don’t_ ………..”

            “It is about time that you snapped back at that one who calls himself Prime,” Galvatron chuckled, swiping his finger along Hot Rod’s jawline again.  “But tell me, _why_ were you jealous?”  He asked with a soft smile at his precious Prime.

            “Optimus, _he_ …….. ** _you_** ……..you have a Spark-bond with him.  If you would choose _him over me_ ………or if he fought for your attentions……….then **_I_** ………..” Hot Rod whimpered, turning his gaze up to his lover.   His faceplate was miserable-looking and tear-streaked, with a swath of regurgitated fuel on his mouth and chin.

            “I believe I told you _that litter_ in my Spark means **_nothing_** to me,” Galvatron growled softly.  “In fact, I would never have even known what they were if you had not told me,” he added, gripping the flame-colored mech’s messy chin roughly.  “Human, turn off the lights—if you can reach them.”

            “Got it,” Daniel said, reaching up for the other switch on the wall, and turning off the lights.  The room went completely dark, except for the cracks around the door frame and the glowing optics of the three mechs in the room.

            “Open your chestplate, my little Prime,” Galvatron commanded of the sobbing mech in front of him.

            Hot Rod shook his head sharply, he was so afraid of doing that right now!   What if he were _just_ being stupid and stressed out?  If there _wasn’t_ actually a newspark there and Galvatron got all concerned over nothing but a stupid, selfish, overly-stressing Autobot…………he knew his Emperor would be angry with him.  He _didn’t want **that**_ ………he _didn’t_ want to make Galvatron mad.  He didn’t want to do anything that jeopardized their already often-precarious relationship.   He couldn’t bear that…………..

            “Open, dammit—or I’ll wrench it open myself!”  The Decepticon Leader hissed angrily.

            Hot Rod opened his chestplate, slowly.  This time, Galvatron knew exactly what it was he was looking for, as far as a “ _newspark_ ” was concerned.  That meant that _this time_ , it was a whole lot easier to find—if it existed.

            It was there—a small, red-violet Spark that was hovering around Hot Rod’s brilliant blue-white Spark.   The only thing that surprised Galvatron was that it was _not lavender_ , like Novablaze’s Spark had been.  However, a _red-violet Spark_ was not…………..an unfamiliar color to the Leader of the Decepticons.   He wondered whom he had known once with a Spark of that hue?   But then he threw that thought out with a shake of his head, as he closed Hot Rod’s chestplate himself.

            “Human, turn the lights back on, now—it appears I will need to take my little Prime to Hook’s clinic,” Galvatron said, firmly.  He reached over and pulled the smaller mech into his arms and then rose to his pedes.  “There is _definitely_ a newspark inside of him.  It will be a very long year ahead of us,” he chuckled, softly, gazing down as he saw Hot Rod burying his faceplate in Galvatron’s broad chest with embarrassment and desperation.


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Evil plotting is afoot!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Bonus points to anyone who figures out the dark path this is going to take. I gave you all a few clues. *wry laugh*

_ Chapter Two: _

 

            **{Really, though—is this the _best_ you can do?}**   A shrill voice groaned inside of Raj-ur-Malekk’s head.

            “I should think you would _appreciate_ good craftsmanship, Starscream,” the Quintesson biologist chided.  “Spark-ignition is the _old way_ of crafting a frame and creating a new product.   I’m completely coherent of the Spark-ignition process………..and you are, right now, a _program detached from a Spark_.  Therefore it is _impossible_ for you to be revived without a new Spark.”

            **{I _do_ have to wonder how I survived like this……….I saw Galvatron destroy my old frame,}** Starscream’s detached program ghost sighed.

            “I admit to having _that question_ myself, but sometimes the strongest of emotions linger after death,” Raj-ur-Malekk responded in a quiet voice.   “Please insert your program ghost into the Spark-crystal—I will ignite it in thirty seconds.  Then I shall put the new Spark in your new frame.”

            **{Understood.  I have to admit, I’m rather looking forward to being _alive_ again!}**   The former Decepticon laughed, plunging his program ghost into the depths of the empty crystal.

            Raj-ur-Malekk walked over to his console and dropped the shield down over the Spark-crystal.  He’d carved it from the most expensive piece of crystal he could find—stronger than what he’d used on most of his Sharkticon staff, except it was _similar_ to the crystal he’d used when he created Rawjaw.  So he knew that the quality of a Spark-crystal made a _better Spark_ in the end.   The Quintesson biologist bombarded the crystal with many levels of energy and there was suddenly a miniature explosion akin to a supernova.  The new Spark flared a furious _red-violet_.

            Using a manipulative set of arms, Raj-ur-Malekk opened the chestplate of the new frame he’d designed for Starscream.  He had kept the general colors of grey, red and blue…….as well as some of the general aesthetic of the Decepticon’s original frame, he simply streamlined it a little more.  Very carefully, using his manipulative tools, the Quintesson placed the freshly-ignited Spark into the spark-casing of the brand-new frame.

            After several moments, the protective red glass coverings over the optic orbs glowed a luminescent red.  Arms and legs moved slowly, testing the joints and junctures of the frame.  Steam hissed out through vents and seams popped open to get fresh ventilation through the frame.   Cooling fans roared and static popped in the vocalizer as it attempted to reboot.

            “I must say, this design is _quite nice_ ,” Starscream chuckled as the vocalizer finally came to full functioning capability.   “There’s a bit more _depth_ in the vocalizer, too.  I **_like_** that……….far better than my shrill pitch that I had before,” he added, admiring the deeper tone of his voice.   “Of course, some time later on…….I shall have to find an opportunity to test the interface array.  Though out of curiosity, why have you _only_ equipped me with the spike option and _not the full array_?”

            “You appear to be under a design flaw **_misunderstanding_**.  The military hardware line were **_only_** to ever have the spike and transfluid option—the consumer goods line had the valve and gestation tank option.  That damn computer we made to create your Sparks _took it upon itself_ to create a mash-up of the array,” the Quintesson growled—he could feel his Mask of Rage trying to slip into place and instead refocused his attention to the testing of Starscream’s new frame to prevent it.

            Starscream gave a little chuckle as he noticed the Quintesson biologist trying to hold back his temper.   Well, it isn’t as if he were actually disappointed—it simply meant he was an “ _alpha male_ ” this time and there’d be **_nobody_** trying to dominate him, _he_ would be the one doing the dominating!

            Raj-ur-Malekk went through a checklist of questions to test Starscream’s mental capabilities as well as manipulation of the frame—to make sure the Spark-to-frame compatibility worked.  Every single question was answered and every small frame test was passed, so the Quintesson biologist had to say that the experiment was a success.   But now it was time to see if the extra options the two had come up with would _also_ be a success.

            The one thing that Raj-ur-Malekk truly appreciated about Starscream was that the former Decepticon was a _damn good scientist_.  He _wasn’t_ afraid to experiment and he wasn’t afraid of failure setting him back.   While building the new frame and speaking with the disembodied program (which had honestly started making the Quintesson’s staff think their master had _finally_ gone completely over the deep end), they had passed back and forth several ideas on enhancing the frame’s functional capabilities with some _add-ons_.   Everything they bandied back-and-forth had worked in **_beta testing_** , now they could see if it would work in truth.

            “Shall we test our experimental armour, first?”  Raj-ur-Malekk chuckled, waving one of his tentacles dismissively.

            “If this really _does_ work, it’ll be an excellent tool for spying and infiltration,” Starscream chuckled.  He walked over to the item in the corner—a large humanoid frame in some kind of battle armour, it was slightly larger than Starscream’s own frame.  “Open, shell……” he commanded firmly.

            The large form and battle armour split in half, a front and a back piece, from the helmet to the pedes.   Starscream stepped inside and then commanded the shell to close around him.  He took a few moments to download the program protocols and then proceeded to test the limbs of the shell around him—it moved in perfect synch with his own frame.

            “The Pretender shell functions properly with my frame,” the former Decepticon reported.  “However, _how_ do we deal with the size?  Most organic species are _not_ this large………”

            “I did install a mass compression protocol—you should see if it works.   Some of your former co-horts used to use mass displacement programming, this is essentially the same thing,” the Quintesson biologist responded.

            Starscream searched internally for the mass compression protocol and activated it.  The armoured humanoid shell, as well as his own personal frame, shrank down to a more Earth human-sized proportion.   He still felt the same internally, even though his size was much more compact……..so the protocols were functioning properly and not causing damage to his new frame.

            “It’s looking like all of our theories and ideas are _working properly_.  Now we should see if my holographic projector idea will work—since most humans _don’t_ really dress in battle armour,” Starscream chuckled, activating the holographic projection system.

            In a few moments, the armoured humanoid frame suddenly resembled a well-dressed, handsome human male.   Starscream made a few movements—some slow and some rapid, to check for glitching in the holographic projection image.   As of the moment, there were no graphical glitches in the projection that he could find.   The only drawback was—he would have to do all he could to _avoid being touched_ while using these protocols, because they had no way to bring any sort of tactile camouflage to the projection system.

            “It looks like it all works pretty well—so, it’ll make infiltration a breeze.  _On Earth_ , at any rate.  Does the holographic projection system work for any _other_ species?”  Starscream asked, curiously.

            “Well, a few that I have complete data on, but probably not as many different species as you would like to have,” Raj-ur-Malekk chuckled, wryly.

            “I’ll take what I can get, then,” Starscream responded with a grin.  Then he disengaged the holographic and compression protocols and stepped out of the Pretender shell.  “How is my strike force looking, lately?”  He asked, curiously, as the two of them walked out of the room and down the hallways of the Quintesson’s laboratory on his baseworld.

            “They are still undergoing final testing, to ensure the Spark-to-frame compatibility.   They can be designed from scratch without the extra bits we had deigned to put into _you_ ,” Raj-ur-Malekk answered, waving his tentacles as he spoke—which reminded Starscream of several of the Earth humans he’d known years and years ago.  “I’ve also managed to use a bit of your former co-hort Soundwave’s _‘cassette spy’_ technology—to give you a few _‘cassette spies’_ of your own.”

            “That will work.   I’ve been considering a name for my little group that you’ve given me.  Clearly Galvatron will not give up the name _‘Decepticon’_ for any reason, but while I was back on Earth—some of the cultures were unable to speak the transliteration of our original term into the common tongue _‘Decepticons’_.  One of the most common phrasings in a few cultures that I heard for our name was _‘Destrons’_ —so I think I should like to use **_that_** for the name of our group……..in a way it’s far more suitable.  Deception and lies were Megatron’s way—chaos and destruction are Galvatron’s way.   My way may be more _middle of the road_ than they happen to be—I fare well as a deceiver _and_ a destroyer,” Starscream said, chuckling softly.

            “Our alliance may grow beyond what we’d originally wanted and, _truthfully_ , my own Quintesson species prefer not to associate with me anyways.  I am too old and I am not into making money as they are, those brats,” Raj-ur-Malekk responded, waving a tentacle dismissively.  “So, I may as well be a _‘Destron’_ , too—so long as our alliance holds.”

            Rawjaw gave a grunt and growl and pointed towards the display screen as Starscream and his master entered the main communications area.   He replayed a news report that he had recorded, which he felt his master may find interesting.

 

**|…….it is an interesting tidbit to hear, certainly.   As the previous Autobot Leader, known as _‘Rodimus Prime’_ to us all here, as members of the Galactic Alliance—to hear that he had become _‘pregnant’_ was certainly newsworthy chatter,|** the green-skinned, four-armed alien on the screen was saying to another person, this one a female with very white skin and a mane of hair that seemed to explode in a stripe down her back.

 

            “This looks like one of those little gossipy talk-shows—they were all the rage back on Earth!”  Starscream laughed.  “So they’re talking about the Autobots, no big deal……..”

            Rawjaw snarled at Starscream, basically to keep quiet and let it keep playing.

 

**|It’s become great speculation as to how such a thing happened, especially knowing no other of the Transformers species has _ever_ born progeny,|** the white-skinned female added to her compatriot’s gossip.

 

**|Some postulate it was because he carried that sacred object to the Autobots—the Matrix of Leadership.  Which, as you all know, from the news reports out of Earth………he had to open and empty of its power or whatever to stop the humans’ little hate plague from spreading out into the universe,|** the green-skinned one said, nodding at his female companion.   **|This ended his career as _‘Rodimus Prime’_ and now, known as his original designation of _‘Hot Rod’_ —he has continued to carry on as the Ambassador to Chaar as part of the ceasefire accords he forged with Galvatron, the Leader of the Decepticons.|**

 

**|His _lover_ , right?  At least as _I_ understand the term.  They don’t have a ceremony of marriage amongst the Transformers species,|** the female said, smiling very stupidly (so Starscream thought).  **| _That’s_ an interesting matchup right there—a psychopath and one of the nicest guys in the universe, _together_.|**

 

**|But it’s the way of the universe, though—the impossible, crazy, unexpected love between two individuals.   Now that Hot Rod is _………..‘sparked up’_ again, to use their terminology—we’ve all be wondering just _what_ he will bear his crazy lover this time around!|**   The green-skinned one laughed.  **|Most of the Transformers species we’ve seen are male or identify as male—however, there are a few that identify as female or don’t identify with a specified gender designation.   Their first sparkling, with the designation of _‘Novablaze’_ , has appeared to identify as male with a potential flight mode as their alternative mode to change into—though we have not heard if he has changed into his alternative mode for a first time as of yet.|**

 

**|He is still a _little child_ , yet—since the Transformers species has never had this occur before, they aren’t sure what Novablaze’s growth rate will be like.   Some species don’t like siblings though—so I wonder how Novablaze feels about the potential sibling his carrier will bear within the next year?|**  The female talk-show host chuckled.   **|We will return shortly to take questions from our audience on the topics we’ve discussed today—stay tuned!|**

 

            Rawjaw turned the screen off and tilted his head curiously at his master.

            “So, the Autobot Leader is _no longer leader_ ………..and he is going to bear a _second sparkling_ in the near future,” Raj-ur-Malekk murmured, rubbing a tentacle on the back of his flattened helm.   “Ah, I wish I had the _original data_ of him carrying the first—there would be _so many improvements_ that could be made to the Cybertronian frame if we could see why this Rodimus-Hot Rod was able to bear life and Galvatron was able to ignite it!”   He sighed, wistfully.

            “Well, why not get this information now that he’s carrying a second?”  Starscream said, a sly smile creeping across his faceplate.   “I am not saying going straight to Chaar and taking the little brat-bot will be easy, but…………we could _take_ Hot Rod and run some tests on him now, couldn’t we?”   Raj-ur-Malekk looked up at Starscream with hope lighting up his old optics.  “Maybe snag the tiny-brat-bot as well………..and you can see what makes the sparkling tick?”

            “ _Could_ you do it, Starscream?”  The Quintesson biologist said, softly.

            “It would be my pleasure to _piss Galvatron off_ ,” Starscream laughed.  “I’ll need to do a little bit of planning and plotting, but…………I think within a couple weeks I might be able to pull off a kidnapping caper.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Anybody know where "Destron" comes from? Anyone? (Answer: the English transliteration of the katakana reading for the Japanese word for the Decepticons.)


	3. Chapter 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Daniel chews out Optimus........and Starscream's plan gets set in motion.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> In the 1990's, when I was a young teen--I did a series of post-"The Rebirth" stories and Daniel was a pretty focal character in it, beyond Hot Rod being the most important character. I spent a lot of time developing their friendship. So, I'm pleased to be able to do so again. :)

_ Chapter Three: _

 

            Daniel took a deep breath and walked up to Optimus Prime.   This was going to be _hard_ , but even his dad said that Optimus Prime was being far too stubborn about the situation.  “Hey, Optimus—we need to talk, _just the two of us_ , okay?”  The teenage boy asked.

            “Of course, Daniel…….let’s find a conference room,” the Leader of the Autobots said warmly, down at the human youth.

            Daniel inwardly frowned.  Immediately Optimus already treated _Daniel_ better than he ever did Hot Rod—this **_really_** wasn’t fair.   The two of them………….the honored and revered Autobot Leader and the offspring of the first human the Autobots met on Earth, in a room _together_.   It might turn out to be _a little messy_ by the time it was all over.

            “Look, I’m heading off to Athenia for the remainder of my summer break tomorrow, but I think we need to talk about something important first,” Daniel said, electing to stand, even as Optimus Prime sat down at the conference table.

            “Are _you_ about to lecture me about how I treated Hot Rod as well?”  The Prime asked, guardedly.

            “Actually, **_yes_**.   But I _can’t_ lecture you as good as Magnus can,” Daniel laughed.   “Hot Rod’s always been lost and lonely—I’ve known that ever since you assigned him to babysit me.  Which, frankly, was a _ridiculous_ use of his skills………..but at least **_I_** got a good big brother out of it.  You guys— _you Autobots_ —you **_never_** gave him the attention or education that a young mech like him really _needed_.”

            Optimus Prime gave a soft sigh, but kept listening.

            “I may just be a _‘kid’_ according to you guys, but so was Hot Rod—and _my parents_ gave me more love and attention than any of the Autobots **_ever_** gave him.   Hell, you Autobots gave _me_ more attention that you _ever_ gave to him!   When the Matrix chose _him_ to succeed you—it saw his potential for so much more, but he didn’t have the confidence to grab it then,” Daniel continued, leaning back against the wall and folding his arms across his broad, young chest.   “ _Galvatron_ gave him the confidence.   Yeah, Galvatron started by beating the crap out of him…….but he saw Rodimus Prime’s potential and he _encouraged_ it—maybe in the weirdest way possible, but it started something inside of Hot Rod and he truly became _‘Rodimus Prime’_.   He was also Rodimus’ first, you know………..and I don’t know how it is for you Transformers, but for humans—a first lover and a first time is really kinda special.   As someone who had always looked for a person to show an interest in him, he grabbed on to Galvatron _desperately_ —and the Decepticon Leader instinctively knew what _he_ should do to make Rodimus better.   They work well together.”

            This time Optimus Prime didn’t say anything when Daniel stopped talking.  Not even a sigh.

            “ _My dad_ was the one who came up with and drafted the ceasefire accords.  He saw what was happening between Rodimus and Galvatron and thought……….something good could come out of it,” Daniel continued, gently.   “My dad finally saw someone who had an interest in his _‘other son’_ and did what he could to encourage it.  In the five years that Hot Rod was Rodimus Prime……….and the Leader of the Autobots—he bloomed into his full potential.   He brought about a kind of peace in your long-standing war, he brought the Autobots and Earth into the Galactic Alliance…………he won the Spark of the craziest Transformer in existence and _forged a child_ with him.   And in the end, **_he sacrificed everything_** —was willing to sacrifice _all_ he gained……… _just_ to save the universe.   He believed that opening the Matrix ended everything he’d gained and was willing to give his life even still…….just to make sure everyone that he loved had lived.   And that included Galvatron.  And _you_.”

            “And what is it that you want me to do, Daniel?   This isn’t something that I am able to fix,” Optimus Prime said, shaking his head.

            “ _Stop treating him like a goddamned newmech!_    Stop trying to force apart all the relationships he’s ever built!   _Stop fucking messing with him!_ ”  Daniel yelled loudly.  And if his father heard his language he’d probably be sent to his room without food for a night—even though Daniel had heard Spike use a lot harsher language at times.  “He _deserves_ what he’s found.  He _doesn’t_ need your damned approval anymore!   _You need to fucking stay out of his life now!_ ”  The teenage boy snarled angrily.   “Have I made it clear?  **_Leave Hot Rod alone_** —he’s fine with Galvatron, he’s fine with the Decepticons.   There _isn’t_ a war and he _isn’t_ being deceived!”

            The anger and tone in Daniel’s voice completely surprised Optimus Prime.  He wasn’t prepared to be yelled at by any of the human allies.  Especially not the youngest of them—whom he’d only remembered as a child from before he had died.

            “Don’t tear apart the fragile peace he’s forged with Galvatron, simply because it doesn’t suit your view of the end of the war.  Just _leave him be_ , that’s all,” Daniel finished, tired, but happy he got it all out there.  “I’ve gotta go pack now.  Think about _everything_ I said……..everything Magnus explained to you—and think about your chewing out that you got from Galvatron and the tone in his voice when he said all that stuff.”   The human teenager walked to the door.  “And think hard on it.  Because you’re going to become unlikable if you keep being stubborn like this and living in the haze of your war.”

 

*      *      *      *      *

 

            “Mmmm……..that feels _so nice_ ……..” Hot Rod moaned, writhing on the berth, wrinkling up the violet sheets beneath his frame.   “How……… ** _how_** do you do that Galvatron…….?   How do you make a program sweep so……….. _sexual_?”  He groaned, gazing up at his lover.

            The cords of their data-port interface connection swung gently between them as Galvatron knelt between his legs and just stroked the spread orange thighs gently.  It was his program ghost sweeping through Hot Rod’s systems that felt amazing.

            “You really were _not_ supposed to open your array, but I suppose I can forgive you since your senses are all a disaster with your carrying protocols,” Galvatron chuckled, reaching over and swiping a forefinger through the wet, mesh folds of Hot Rod’s valve.   “Of course, _to you_ at the moment— _everything_ is sexual, so I am not quite certain why you are praising my skills _only now_ ,” the grey-and-purple mech teased softly.

            “ ** _Nnngh_** ………..don’t tease me so.  It’s _too much_ for you to be in my program and messing with my valve, too……..just……….. ** _NNNNNGH_**!”  Hot Rod squealed in surprise as that dampened forefinger flicked lightly at his swollen anterior node.   “ ** _Mmmmmmmmmm……..ah!!_** ”  He groaned, his back arching as he succumbed to a sweet little overload.

            “You are _far too sensitive_.   I do not recall you being quite this sensitive when you were carrying Novablaze………..” Galvatron murmured, thrusting a couple fingers into the trembling valve, feeling it pulse gently with the aftershocks of the overload.

            “The _name_ should……….. _say everything_ , my lord………you know?  I am _hotter than ever before_ ,” Hot Rod responded, grinning up at Galvatron, a light panting evident as he spoke.

            “I will give you _that one_ , little Prime,” the Decepticon Leader purred, sensually.   “It is not a terrible thing to be so very needy, I do not ever mind satisfying you—but there may come a day when **_I_** have not the stamina to do so.  Will you not ever take another, just for fun?”  Galvatron asked, curiously.

            “ ** _No_**.  I _can’t_ ………..it’s……….it’s not the way I am, my lord,” Hot Rod murmured, servos clutching at the bedsheets.

            Galvatron gave a soft little sigh and leaned forwards, gently brushing the fingers of his free hand along the jawline of the flame-colored mech.  “I _do_ treasure you, my little Prime—and I would _not_ have you be wanting.  If there ever comes a time when **_I_** cannot satisfy you…….” he began, quietly.

            “You’ll be watching me play with myself, I’m afraid.  There’s _no one else_ for me, but you, Galvatron.  It’s the way I am and it’s the way it is,” Hot Rod murmured, placing one of his servos against the one Galvatron had on his faceplate.

            “Well, _that_ is something I would not mind watching, then,” Galvatron chuckled, amused at his little lover’s stubbornness not to frag with others.   He had hoped at one point to watch the young Prime and Cyclonus go at each other—he imagined **_that_** would be a fine show indeed, given how passionate and needy the two mechs both were around Galvatron, individually.

            “Hey, while you’re ‘facing in my systems and playing with my valve—mind giving our newspark some of your Sparklight?” Hot Rod asked, rubbing at the back of Galvatron’s servo on his faceplate.   “You know, because you’re _clearly_ not busy enough—like, you know……..fragging me senseless or whatever………..” he teased lightly.   He opened his chestplate and grinned up at his lover.

            “I suppose I may as well, since I am _stuck here_ taking care of you anyways,” Galvatron purred, pulling back the servo on Hot Rod’s faceplate and opening his chest—even as he still moved the fingers of his other servo in-and-out of the wet valve.   He leaned forwards and leaned close, but not close enough to initiate a Spark-bonding between himself and his Prime.   Though it was clear the young Prime’s Spark was eager enough for that, as tendrils wisped out, _trying_ to grab for the light of Galvatron’s Spark.

            The small, red-violet Spark hovered _just inside_ the spark-casing, halting its orbit and easing out only a little to take some of the Sparklight of its sire.   It _needed_ CNA and got plenty on a regular basis from its carrier—but often needed some light Spark-bonding like this to get more CNA _from its sire_.   Right now, it made Galvatron chuckle—Novablaze’s newspark was _never_ so hesitant to take its sire’s Sparklight………this tiny newspark was very shy!

            “Come, little one!   _Your sire_ is urging you to grow stronger by giving you some of his Sparklight!”  Galvatron chuckled, his engines rumbling with warmth and fondness.  Emotions that he could not ever express, except through a physical manifestation such as these little rumbles of pleasure and laughter.  “ _Do not hesitate—take what is yours!_   Let your Spark be as bold and as eager as your carrier’s—look how it reaches so freely for my light!”  The Decepticon Leader purred at the tiny newspark.

            Hot Rod sent a surge of love through his EM field and the data-port connection, very happy to see Galvatron enthusiastic about another newspark.   The “ _love_ ” emotion was one that Galvatron still could not understand, but _treasured_ as a precious part of his young Prime.   Galvatron rumbled with laughter, pleased and amused by his precious Prime and the newspark……..he sent waves of desire rippling through the connection and bared his fangs with pleasure to see Hot Rod’s back arch and his neck present itself.

            “Be patient, little Prime— _you_ commanded me to give Sparklight to the newspark, so you _must_ hold back your own personal wanting,” Galvatron laughed, sending a burst of neutral static through the data-port connection to settle Hot Rod down a little.  He dampened the interfacing protocols with a firm command through the systems and brought the flame-colored mech’s eager need down a few levels.  “Time to take your needed Sparklight, little one……. _come out_ to greet your sire’s Spark,” Galvatron said, very quietly and very commandingly.

            The red-violet newspark trembled, still right inside of Hot Rod’s spark-casing, but then drifted out to orbit in a space before the blue-white Spark that it was _always_ near.   It felt Galvatron’s red Sparklight as something warm and familiar and hovered between the two Sparks happily for several very long moments, sending out tiny tendrils to gather some of its sire’s Sparklight in a brief bonding, then drifted back into orbit within its carrier’s spark-casing—hiding once more, like the shy newspark that it seemed it was.

            “I suppose _that_ shall have to be good enough for now,” the Emperor of the Decepticons chuckled softly, closing up both of their chestplates.  “Now, shall I give you what **_you_** want—and donate some transfluid to your forge for the newspark’s frame?”  He purred, sending ripples of pleasure back through the data-port cables into his young Prime’s program.

            “ ** _Tsk_** , it’s about time……….. _my lord_ ,” Hot Rod laughed, grinning happily up at the mech he loved.

            Galvatron roared with laughter as he swept a hand swiftly through the data-port cables and leaned forwards—he rocked his hips a little to rub the length of his thick spike against the quivering wet lips of his young Prime’s valve.  As he did so, he nipped lightly at Hot Rod’s tender neck cables and scraped fangs up one of the thickest cables, drawing purple-pink lifeblood and licking at it eagerly.  The flame-colored mech moaned eagerly, his hips quaking beneath Galvatron’s solid weight against him.

            “ _Primus_ …………just give it to me, _dammit_ ……….. ** _I want your spike so bad_**!”  Hot Rod sobbed, raising his arms and grabbing at the pillared portions of Galvatron’s shoulder armour.  “ _Frag me, frag me, frag me!!!_ ”  He groaned, trying to rock against his lover’s weight and get that desired spike into his valve.

            “You always amuse me so……….and you always arouse me, as well,” Galvatron chuckled, pulling his hips back and then giving a hard thrust into the tight little valve.   He’d been surprised the first time he took _Hot Rod’s_ valve—though it made more sense with a more slender frame, his valve would be smaller and tighter, too.  But it still got just as wet as always, _that_ hadn’t changed whatsoever.

            Hot Rod’s strangled little cry of ecstasy made Galvatron smile.  The eager little frame kept rocking and trembling beneath him as his engine upshifted sharply and kicked his vents open, cooling fans going into overdrive.   The flame-colored mech’s grips on his shoulder pillars dug in and even managed to dent the Decepticon Leader’s super-hard frame metal, he was moaning like he was in both agony and ecstasy—and it _probably was_ a little bit of both.  Galvatron still was rough with him—and that’s the way Hot Rod _wanted_ it, he never expected kind and gentle lovemaking from the powerful war machine.

            Hot Rod’s slender legs wrapped around Galvatron’s hips and he began kicking his pedes furiously on the grey-and-purple mech’s aft and back, trying to non-verbally get him to speed things up.  The young mech was no longer actually on the berth itself, but glued up against Galvatron’s bulky frame, clutching at it desperately.   The Decepticon Leader smiled to himself and braced one hand firmly in the center of the flame-colored mech’s back, using the other to grip the headboard with—Galvatron really was doing all the work right now and his little Prime was clinging to him, mewling for more.

            It was not so bad, after all.   His needy little Prime was a _treasure_.   A _truly cherished_ treasure, was Galvatron thought as the head of his spike tore through the thin membrane of the gestation tank and filled it with the needed transfluid for the newspark’s eventual frame.   Even as the membrane would reseal after he pulled out, keeping the sire’s materials within…….Hot Rod’s lithe little frame trembled with several small overloads after the first powerful one knocked him silly in Galvatron’s arms.   He purred and mewled unintelligibly in the powerful war machine’s arms, happy to even be here now and at this moment.

 

*      *      *      *      *

 

            “So, tell me about how this works, Hot Rod!” Brainstorm said eagerly, as the flame-colored mech finally came back to the embassy building after a couple days off of medical leave.  “I mean, yeah—clearly I can see you’ve done this before, _but_ …….!”  The young Autobot scientist giggled, nodding his head over at Novablaze, who was playing with his blocks and cars on the floor near the desk of Hot Rod’s main office.

            The youngling had made a small fence out of blocks around his new Shiba Inu plush and had placed it so that it was watching him play with his blocks and cars.   Novablaze was making vrooming and screeching car sounds, playing happily on the floor with his toys.  Happy……most especially _now_ that his carrier was back and his carrier was fine.   The youngling hadn’t minded being watched by Brainstorm and Carnivac—he’d watched _a lot_ of “ _Fuzzy Fiesta_ ” with the Terrorcons, too—but he’d only seen Hot Rod in such a miserable condition once before………and it had _scared_ him, because he thought his carrier was going to somehow die.  (He didn’t know what “ _attempted suicide_ ” was, just that he sensed that his carrier was “ _near death_ ”.)   So, yes………the youngling was very happy to have his carrier back safe-and-sound.

            “Seriously Brainstorm—I _don’t_ understand everything about it.  To be honest, I didn’t think I could even carry again in my original frame, I thought I needed my Matrix-reformatted body to do it,” Hot Rod laughed warmly, settling in his desk chair and watching Novablaze playing with his toys.   “But it’s a lot of work……..and I’m, unfortunately, going to get to a point where I’m _pretty useless_ around here.   I’d ask Hook, or give First Aid a call—they documented _everything_.  Literally _‘everything’_ and even made me put a recorder in the damn berth for several nights so they could see how we Spark-bonded with the newspark and Galvatron’s _‘donation’_ of transfluid in the gestation tank to forge the frame,” the flame-colored mech groaned deeply.  “I honestly think they _just_ wanted to watch us frag, but used the _‘for science!’_ phrase to legitimize it!”  He laughed.

            Even Brainstorm had heard how scary-violent the relationship between the former Autobot Leader and the Decepticon Leader was in the berthroom.  Sounds like war cries, the fact that poor Mixmaster had to fix the berth almost every single time they went wild at each other……..yeah, from everything Brainstorm heard the Decepticons gossip about—Rodimus Prime and Galvatron’s nights of fragging were pretty legendary!   While he could tell that Galvatron eased back a little on the violence nowadays—he could certainly see that there were still choice dents in the flame-colored mech’s frame, as well as marks on his neck cables.  So it _definitely_ wasn’t mushy, lovey-dovey stuff now that he was just Hot Rod, there was still plenty of roughness between them.

            Brainstorm had seen partners who were _worse_ with each other, so a bit of bondage and rough-play was hardly anything in comparison.

            “Hey Brainstorm, can I ask?   Why did **_you_** volunteer to come to Chaar, to work at the embassy?”  Hot Rod asked, curiously—and also trying to steer the topic away from fragging while they were in front of Novablaze.   “I mean Carnivac is quite charming and as fabulous a diplomat as the Decepticons could ever produce.  It makes a lot of sense for _him_ to volunteer here.  But _you_ ……..you’re a scientist.   Why’d you want to come and work at an embassy built around politics?”

            “Ah, _that_.  Was wondering if it would ever come up,” Brainstorm chuckled.  “Okay, now don’t freak out or anything—but the main reason I wanted to come work here is because I have a crush on you.  _Totally_.”

            Hot Rod’s optics glowed somberly.   He’d wait for the full explanation before saying anything right now.

            “But…….I know how you feel about Galvatron and I’d _never, ever_ interfere in that.  So—secret crush, I suppose.    When I was with my unit out in the backwaters of the universe……….we saw clips of your speech after Unicron had been totaled.   We discussed it endlessly before doing anything about it,” the teal-and-white mech continued, his voice warm and cheerful.  “By the time Cerebros and I and the rest all came back to Cybertron…….we’d seen other newsclips of you.  Of the accords.  The gossip shows about you and Galvatron.   And what started as a crush based on how cute you were deepened when I saw what a great young leader you were becoming.   I was like…………. _I want to be a part of that_.   A part of what you were doing for all of our kind—not just Autobots, but Decepticons as well.   Your Spark was trying to encompass the universe and _it was beautiful_.”

            “ _Brainstorm_ ……..” Hot Rod murmured.   This was the first Autobot who ever said that to him—as if they could see the great thing that he was trying to do for them all.   Most of the rest just grasped at the surface stuff—the potential of peace and all that.   No one else saw that Rodimus Prime, now Hot Rod, was trying to make a space for their existence in the entire universe—not just keeping them confined to Cybertron or a planet or two.   Even now, Hot Rod was working towards eventually getting Galvatron to join the Galactic Alliance—to make _all Transformers_ an important part of the universe at large.

            “And when you sent a notice to Cybertron, asking for a few Autobot volunteers to come and live and work on Chaar at your embassy—I knew, _this was my chance_ to be part of what you’re doing for all of us…….” Brainstorm said, throwing out his arms as if to encompass everything.  “Plus, I could get glimpses of your cute aft and sexy frame— _that_ was a bonus.”

            “You are _really weird_ , but I’m glad you’re here.  I’m glad to have at least one Autobot volunteer.  Sorry that it’s mostly Decepticons at the moment,” Hot Rod responded, a wry smile on his faceplate.

            “I think that once more people see what you’re actually doing—and Optimus Prime can stop trying to interfere with it—you’ll have _more Autobots_ volunteering one day,” Brainstorm said, firmly.

            “How many were in your unit and how long were you out there all alone?”  Hot Rod asked, a bit worried if he really should ask that question—but he wanted a little more background on Brainstorm, since his biographical data report was pretty slim and bland.

            “It was me…….and Cerebros as I said before……..Highbrow, Chromedome and Hardhead.  Basically each member had a specialty.  Me, for the science—Highbrow was our intelligence officer, Chromedome was the data guy, Hardhead was our die-hard fighter and Cerebros was the strategist, as well as default leader,” the young scientist explained.  “We’ve only been out on the fringes for about……..maybe twenty years?   I’m only thirty, so I’m really young compared to the majority of our unit.  Chromedome is close to my age……..but Highbrow, Cerebros and Hardhead are all a few centuries old, at least.   None of us are near the age of the real veterans, though………like Bumblebee, Jazz and Optimus, of course.”

            “Ah, _that_ makes sense,” the flame-colored mech murmured.   “Sorry, not trying to get personal— _or make you think I’m interested in you back_ —I just kind of wanted to know a little of your background.  That’s all.”

            “It would be best to know my strengths—so that I can be better as staff for you here,” Brainstorm chuckled.

            “True,” Hot Rod chuckled.  Then he suddenly noticed Novablaze looking up at him.  “What is it, Nova?”  He asked, leaning over in his chair to bend closer to his youngling.

            “Time for fuel, cari!   _Hungry_!”  Novablaze said, cheerfulness in his young vocalizer.

            “Ah-ha-ha………..so it is.  Let’s go down to the cafeteria and get some Energon!”  The flame-colored mech laughed warmly, getting up and bending to pick up his youngling.  “ _Let’s goooooo_!”

            “Don’t forget doggie!”  Novablaze chirped, pointing down at the block-enclosed plush on the floor.

            “Yup, yup……….let’s not forget the doggie,” Hot Rod chuckled, leaning down and grabbing it, then handing it to Novablaze with a grin on his faceplate.

 

*      *      *      *      *

 

            Hot Rod was trying to decide if he’d annoy Galvatron by asking him to wedge into a closet and frag him right now……..or take the gamble that his Decepticon lover was up for the challenge.   They were standing in the large lobby area of the embassy and the flame-colored mech was explaining some new plans to Galvatron for an entertainment facility beyond the habitation blocks.  Galvatron was listening with that look that pretty much said—“ _I have no idea what you are saying, but I am listening because you are my Prime_.”   Hot Rod’s creation protocols were pinging his HUD frantically and he was trying to keep himself calm and rational at the moment.

            Suddenly someone grabbed Hot Rod from behind and slammed a neural inhibitor disc on his forehead, swiftly dragging the suddenly-limp flame-colored mech back towards the door.

            “Well, I guess I can’t get the _tiny-brat-bot_ this time……….but one out of two isn’t bad,” Starscream chuckled.  “Sorry I can’t stay and catch up with you, Galvatron……..but this is a snatch-and-grab mission that is now completed.   Think of me _often_ , would you?”  The former Decepticon mocked, kicking the embassy door open with his foot and racing out before Galvatron could actually react.  Since the whole thing was actually less than 30 seconds!

            But as soon as the initial shock of the quick kidnapping hit the Decepticon Leader—he roared with fury and tore out the embassy door, knocking it completely out of its frame and halfway towards the habitation blocks.

            “How _dare_ you!?  **_Staaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaarrrrrrrrrrscreeeeeeeeeeeam_**!!!”  Galvatron howled, getting ready to boost into the air after the mech who had always infurated him, even when he had once been someone else that he didn’t remember.   “Give me back my Prime and I may _only_ just tear off a few of your limbs!!!”  The Decepticon Leader thundered in rage.

            “Like **_that_** will seriously make me consider surrendering,” Starscream chuckled, increasing the output to his boot thrusters.  After all, he was an aerial-type and there was no way Galvatron’s bulk and weaker thrusters could catch him.   “Liokaiser—would you mind laying down a bit of cover fire and the like, that way we can get back to the ship and warp out?”

            “Not planning to leave me, are you?”  The gestalt rumbled, sweeping forwards to block Galvatron’s path towards Starscream.

            “Not a chance—my army is still small yet and _you are most definitely needed_ for the Destrons to flourish, my dear Liokaiser!”  Starscream responded, good humour in his voice and a grin on his faceplate.

            “Nice to know that, then,” the rumbling laughter and reply came from the combined form of Starscream’s new strike force.   “ _Halt, Galvatron_!”  Liokaiser threatened, holding out a massive sword that was crackling with energy.

            “ _Never!_    Nothing ever stands between my targets and I—you shall move or you shall feel my fury!”  Galavtron snarled, angrily.  “You had better not go any further Starscream—or I shall rip out your Spark and feed it to the Terrorcons!”   He roared, raising his nova cannon and charging it.

            “I am _so scared_ right now,” Starscream chortled, taking a last look back at the infuriated Decepticon Leader.  “Enjoy your few minutes of playtime, Liokaiser!”  He laughed, speeding up and flying towards his mid-sized assault cruiser that was in orbit out beyond Chaar’s gravitational range.

            “ _Tch_.   I’d rather have had more time to truly test my skills, but………..” the gestalt grumbled, sweeping his massive blade in an arc to cut Galvatron off and throw off his aim.

            Galvatron’s plasma blast shot out into Chaar’s atmosphere, hitting no targets whatsoever and forcing him to reverse his boot thrusters to avoid the sword swipe.  He was infurated!   Not only did Starscream steal Hot Rod _right in front of him_ —but their newspark, too!   And not just that……..Galvatron was absolutely certain that Starscream was NOT going to treat either of the Decepticon Emperor’s treasures kindly.

            But he’d said he’d wanted the “ _tiny-brat-bot_ ” too………Starscream had also intended on taking Novablaze?   **_Why?_**   What was the former Decepticon’s scheme this time?!   As Galvatron tried to run down a list of reasons why Starscream could possibly have an interest in newmechs, he avoided Liokaiser’s swings of the sword and tried to watch the retreating former Decepticon through the upper atmosphere.  

            He wasn’t going to catch Starscream now, he just had to figure out where the devious mech was going.

            **|Soundwave!  Dispatch Ratbat and Ravage, get them aboard Starscream’s vessel—we will deal with the rest later!|**   Galvatron glyph-sent to his communications officer.

            Now he just had to pretend to keep this gestalt named “ _Liokaiser_ ” busy enough so that Starscream wouldn’t have the opportunity to think he’d have spies aboard his ship.  Considering all the practice his young Prime had given him in a hunt-and-chase all those years, he had some of that guile in battle down by now.   He’d dodge-and-aim with his nova cannon at the gestalt, keeping the combined Transformer’s focus solely on him.

            Then Liokaiser’s head tilted as he listened to an internal communique and the gestalt flew off, breaking into his six combined parts.  They retreated back to Starscream’s assault cruiser, the _Shadowstalker_.   The ship’s engines fired up and it went into warp right outside the atmosphere of Chaar.

            “ _Quintesson technology._   He has allied himself with the Quintessons,” Galvatron growled as he landed back on the dusty surface of his planet, right in front of the embassy building.  The Decepticon Leader fumed as Cyclonus and Soundwave approached him.  “Did the cassettes get aboard his vessel, Soundwave?”  He inquired of his communications officer.

            “Affirmative, my lord Galvatron.   But they have been warned that Starscream is canny and suspicious—though Ravage is familiar with that—so they will remain in their cassette modes, in hiding, until they can move about to gather the information you request,” Soundwave answered, his low and echoing voice both somber and quiet.

            “Cyclonus, call ahead to Earth—inform that foolish Optimus Prime that I must speak with him right away.  Then prepare my flagship for the flight,” Galvatron commanded.   “If that aft is on Cybertron, rather than Earth—then speak with whomever is in charge on Earth, because that is where I must leave my spawn.  In the care of the Autobots who can best protect him by location and familiarity.”

            “You……..will take Novablaze to Earth, my lord?”  Cyclonus asked, puzzled and curious at the strange command.

            “Starscream said something about also wanting the _‘tiny-brat-bot’_ as well—I can only fathom he means _my Novablaze_ ,” Galvatron snapped.  “I do not plan to give him the opportunity to come back later for my spawn.”

            “Ah yes, a wise decision, my lord,” Cyclonus said, dipping his shoulders submissively.

            Galvatron looked towards the embassy entrance and saw Carnivac and Brainstorm carefully peeking out.  Novablaze was in Carnivac’s arms and Brainstorm had twin concussive rifles in his servos.  He waved for the two of his young Prime’s staff to come out and join them.  Then he plucked Novablaze from Carnivac’s arms and settled the youngling holding his plush Shiba Inu in the crook of his right arm.

            “Your efforts in protecting my spawn are appreciated,” Galvatron said to the two mechs.  “Novablaze, you will be sent to Earth, to be protected by the Autobots—while I go after the one who took your carrier.  You will be best protected on Earth……….and I know you are familiar with the Autobots who are at Metroplex.  Do you understand?”  He asked, looking down at his youngling.

            “Yes, sire.   Cari?”  Novablaze asked, quietly, looking up into Galvatron’s faceplate.

            “I **_will_** find him.  Do not doubt that,” Galvatron said, firmly.

            Novablaze buried his face in Galvatron’s chest, deeply worried for his carrier.  And Galvatron knew that they _all should worry_ —even he was worried, though he didn’t care to reveal that.  Starscream was vicious and vindictive—there was no telling what he was going to do to Hot Rod.  And the fact that there were Quintessons involved, that meant they intended to do something to the newspark inside of Hot Rod as well.  So, it had to be _THAT_ Quintesson………the one at that conference his young Prime went to years back—and informed Galvatron that the Quintesson had wanted to dissect him because of the newspark which became Novablaze.

            Galvatron had to find Hot Rod before Starscream and his Quintesson allies could harm Hot Rod beyond all repair—and before they could destroy the newspark.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The next chapter, I am afraid, will be very.............unpleasant. Apologies ahead of time. *bows*


	4. Chapter 4

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Starscream does the unforgivable to Hot Rod.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> New Tags have been added. Please be aware of them.
> 
> 1\. Rape/non-consensual interfacing. <\--very important one. 
> 
> If it bothers you, you may want to skip this chapter. It's not gone into detail or is absolutely explicit in this chapter itself--however, it's an incredibly important plot element to this story and its direction. (I didn't want to write it out in detail, myself..............)

_ Chapter Four: _

 

            “ _Hellbat!_   Leave the prisoner alone!”  Leozak snarled, as he came down to the cellblock and saw his fellow Destron inside of the cell, stroking the flame-colored mech’s body with arousal and interest.  “Starscream and Raj-ur-Malekk will melt you back into slag and _start all over_!”  The teal-and-white mech growled, grabbing his cohort by the back of his neck fairing and throwing him out of the cell.  The blue-and-grey mech slammed into the wall outside of the cell.   As soon as Hellbat was outside the cell, he brought the forcefield back down and locked himself in with the prisoner.

            “You’re _no fun_ , Leozak!  I mean, look how **_cute_** he is!”  Hellbat whined, picking himself up off the floor.  “And did you hear…….?   He supposedly has _both_ a spike and a valve!   I wanna see it!”  The Destron soldier said, standing outside the cell with a pouty look on his faceplate.

            “Touch him again and I’ll _cut off your servos_ ………..all the way up to your shoulder-joints.  Then you’ll have to have your assist-mech do _everything_ for you—which would be absolutely hilarious as it’s a bat and has no servos either!”  The teal-and-white mech snapped back.

            “But _you’re_ touching him!”  The grey-and-blue mech whined even more.

            Leozak muttered under his breath, shaking his head as he removed a medi-scanner from a subspace compartment in his right forearm.   “I’m doing a critical examination before Commander Starscream comes down to take a look at him, you idiot!”  The Destron soldier growled in frustration.   He used his left servo to hold the scanner and reached down his right to hold the flame-colored prisoner’s faceplate steady for the scan.   As soon as the initial reading was done, he removed the neural inhibitor from the young Autobot’s forehead.

            Hot Rod groaned and shifted absently on the cot in the holding cell.

            “Hold still, I need a secondary _active_ scan.  It will only take a few moments,” Leozak said, firmly.

            “ _Wha_ …..?  _Who are you_?!”  Hot Rod gasped, scrambling his body awkwardly on the cot when he suddenly realized his arms and legs were strapped down to it.   “ _Where the hell am I_?!”  He snapped, looking around when he realized his body wasn’t going to move around very much.

            “All very good questions that I’ll let our commander answer shortly,” the teal-and-white Destron chuckled wryly.  “Looks like you’re in _normal health_ —assuming this is what a sparked up individual’s health resembles.”

            “Galvatron’s gonna _destroy all of you_ , I just hope you realize that!”  Hot Rod snapped, very seriously.

            “Oh, little Hot Rod……… _really_?  You don’t think I can outwit that lunatic you play around in the berth with?”   Starscream chuckled, lowering the forcefield and entering the holding cell.   “Leozak—put the stasis cuffs on him and let him sit up.  After we chat for a few moments, then I’ll drag him down to the lab myself.”

            “Yes, sir,” Leozak responded, unfastening Hot Rod’s arms first, easily grabbing them when the flame-colored mech tried to aim some swings at the Destron.  The teal-and-white mech bound the wrists with a pair of stasis cuffs and dropped them on Hot Rod’s chest.  Then Leozak unfastened the legs and grabbed them swiftly before Hot Rod could even think of kicking at him.  He yanked the legs over the edge of the cot and grabbed the flame-colored mech’s shoulders to help him sit up.

            “Thank you, Leozak—the two of you may leave now,” Starscream said with a soft chuckle.  “Well, then……….. _let’s chat_ , little Hot Rod.”

            “Like I’d _willingly_ hold a conversation with a psychopath,” Hot Rod muttered.

            Starscream grabbed Hot Rod’s chin roughly and yanked his gaze up.  “You _might_ want to participate……….. _for the newspark’s sake_ ,” the Destron commander said, sharply.

            Fear crossed the flame-colored mech’s faceplate.  He sighed and resolved himself to the current situation.  “Shoot, then………..” Hot Rod muttered, darkly.

            Starscream turned on a recorder before he started speaking again.

            “How did you achieve the ability to forge life……..especially considering that Vector Sigma removed those protocols from all Cybertronian systems?”  The red-blue-grey mech asked, firmly.

            “ _Tch_.  First Aid read all the data from the tablet he got from Raj-ur-Malekk—he thinks that the Matrix of Leadership reformatted my body back to the _original state_.  Mostly as a tool to forge a path to peace.  **_It_** knew that Galvatron was virile enough to spark me up, if the protocols and design were restored,” Hot Rod sighed in answer.  Then he looked up at the former Decepticon—now a Destron.  “You know, he’s going to kill you _again_ , Starscream.”

            “Not this time, little Hot Rod,” Starscream chuckled.  “So, now that I can see the potential of how you can bear life—given the Matrix restoring the design and protocols—but how could _Galvatron_ participate in this?”  He asked.

            “Not completely sure, but we think it’s because Unicron changed his design—it’s got an almost _biological imperative_ to it, he’s _only_ got a spike………which makes him an undeniable _sire_ ,” Hot Rod sighed, laying his cuffed arms on his knees and leaning forwards.

            “ _Ah-ha!_    Now _that_ makes me curious as to why the Matrix didn’t completely reformat your body and remove your spike, then?  After all, if it gave you the carrier protocols, you should _only_ have the valve and gestation tank,” Starscream said, finally beginning to see the grand plan of the all the concepts, as the Quintessons had designed them.

            “I dunno, I guess it was for _my_ benefit—not to send me into shock.  I mean, I was still sealed when I was reformatted, but I knew I had the full array beneath the seals.  And I have some severe stress and esteem issues……” Hot Rod mumbled.  “Starscream, I’m _begging_ you— _don’t_ hurt my newspark!  I swear, I’ll answer all your questions as best as I can, just………..” he trailed off, looking up at the Destron commander with desperation on his faceplate.

            “Oh, silly little Hot Rod—I _won’t_ hurt your newspark,” Starscream chuckled.  He reached down and hauled the flame-colored mech to his pedes.   “But that doesn’t mean we won’t experiment with it a little bit…….” the Destron commander purred softly.

            Hot Rod tried to pull out of Starscream’s grip, but found it futile.  Whoever made the former Decepticon’s new frame made it a _lot stronger_!  Starscream was easily on par with Galvatron’s ridiculous strength now.

 

*       *      *      *      *

 

            “How frustrating,” Raj-ur-Malekk said as he and Starscream leaned over the plain medical slab they’d placed Hot Rod on.  “He’s sealed and locked his chestplate.  If we _try_ to pry it open—it could induce a feedback shock that might kill both him and the newspark,” the Quintesson biologist sighed with disappointment.

            “ _Hmmm_.  How far down is his spark-chamber in his chest?”  Starscream asked, walking over to the table of surgical tools and picked up a thick-bladed laser scalpel.

            “ _Don’t you dare touch me_!!”  Hot Rod snarled.  “ _Don’t_ touch me!  **_Don’t touch my newspark_**!!!”  The flame-colored mech hissed sharply, in tones very much unlike him.

            “This would be an example of his carrying protocols—urging him to protect the newspark with everything,” Raj-ur-Malekk responded.  “Ultrasounds place the spark-chamber about thirty to fifty millimeters deep, from the surface of the chestplate.  His armour plating looks to be about fifteen to twenty millimeters thick.”

            “Shallow chest, but looking at his speed frame, he’s clearly quite slender to begin with.  So, that makes perfect sense,” Starscream chuckled, watching the Quintesson biologist make some marks on Hot Rod’s flame emblem in medical chalk—to show the approximate location of the spark-chamber.  The former Decepticon aerial commander twirled the scalpel in his fingers, awaiting his companion’s final medical markings on the flame-emblazoned chestplate.

            “His fuel pump is _very close_ to his spark-chamber, so _be careful_ ,” Raj-ur-Malekk said, seriously warning Starscream of the potential hazard of this surgical experiment.  “I shall monitor the lifesigns from over here,” he added, hovering over to the large computer console.

            “That sounds like a plan,” Starscream chuckled deviously, turning on the laser scalpel.

            To Hot Rod’s overly-heightened senses at the moment, the soft hum of the laser scalpel sounded like the furious roar of a shuttle engine.  “ _I’ll kill you if you touch my newspark_!!  **_I will kill you_**!!!”  Hot Rod growled, body trying to struggle against all the bindings.

            “Let the _fun_ begin,” the Destron commander said, a devious smirk on his faceplate.  He leaned over Hot Rod and reset his optics to an extra-fine focus, bringing the laser scalpel down to the flame-emblazoned chestplate.  “If you struggle, I may slip up somewhere and cut your spark-casing—so, I’d hold still if I were you, brat-bot.”

            Even the bare potential of a threat against the newspark made Hot Rod go very still and very silent.

            “Thank you, little Hot Rod,” Starscream chuckled.  “Administer the pain-dampener.”

            Raj-ur-Malekk lifted a tentacle-limb and use one of its fine little appendages to press a button on his computer console.  Then a pinkish fluid from one of the four IV-drips flowed quickly into Hot Rod’s nerve-system.  The young Autobot went absolutely and completely numb, even though he was still fully conscious.

            Starscream leaned down into his task and made the incision lines, very precisely and very carefully.  He took the small magnetic clamp he’d set nearby and placed it on the large, rectangular cut area, before finishing it up with the fourth side.  Then the Destron commander straightened up and drew the piece of chestplating out of Hot Rod’s chest.  Starscream gave a low, appreciative whistle.

            “Now **_that_** is a Spark.  Even though the iris is nearly _fully shuttered_ —it clearly wants to shine its light brightly through all containment,” Starscream said with true admiration in his voice.

            He set the scalpel and piece from the young mech’s chest on a standing table nearby.  Then Starscream walked back to the tool table and grabbed several probe sticks of varying lengths.  They all had soft, round, blunted tips on one end and a couple holes at the gripping end, to put appendages through for a firm and no-slip grip.

            Raj-ur-Malekk had hovered over to look inside of Hot Rod’s chest.  “You’re right…….I’ve never seen one _this_ particular color before—a blue so light that it’s nearly white,” the Quintesson biologist murmured.

            “It’s no wonder Galvatron wanted to claim it—a brilliant star like that is _a treasure_ ,” Starscream said, mild admiration in his voice.  “Let’s see if we can find the newspark, now.  Hot Rod—answer me, how old is your newspark?”  He asked, firmly.

            “ _Don’t……. **don’t touch** ………my newspark_……..” Hot Rod snarled, softly, his vocalizer fading in and out of volume.

            “I’ll _smash_ your spark-casing if you don’t answer my question, brat-bot!”  Starscream snapped back.

            Hot Rod whimpered, as if Starscream had already snuffed out his Spark.  “It’s about two months, nearly three………” he sobbed softly.

            “Ah, so if _that’s_ true—then he’s still got about nine months left to carry.  In about three more months, the newspark will drop into the gestation tank, to merge with the frame,” Raj-ur-Malekk responded.  He was checking the original data notes of the slave brand designs with the new data he was suddenly discovering.  “So, right now— ** _if_** Galvatron has been interfacing with him often enough—there should be the beginnings of a frame core in the gestation tank.  Since it’s also so early on in the carrying, and he may only _recently_ discovered he was carrying, the newspark may not have much CNA yet.”

            “How does the newspark get CNA?”  Starscream asked of his scientific companion and Destron force partner, even as he leaned back over the flame-colored mech and took the longest of the probe sticks to tease at the iris of Hot Rod’s spark-casing.

            “Sparklight—that precursor of Spark-bonding,” Raj-ur-Malekk answered. 

            “Makes sense.  So……the frame-forging.  How does the actual design get chosen—the alt mode, specifically?”  Starscream asked, grinning when he got the iris of Hot Rod’s spark-casing to open a bit more.

            “ _Theoretically_ , mind you…………the transfluid from the sire should provide ninety-five percent of the raw material, while some fluids from the carrier comprise the rest.  This should give the frame a basic skeleton, but the CNA of the newspark should be what determines the potential alt mode,” the Quintesson biologist answered.

            “I see.   Though there’s a lot about these two’s previous spawn that gives me a lot of food for thought.  How does a cannon and a camper-trailer forge an aerial vehicle of some sort?”  Starscream chuckled.

            “I should like to point out—their youngling _hasn’t_ tried to transform into an alt mode yet, they are all guessing an aerial mode based upon the apparent _‘wings’_ and some of his design kibble,” Raj-ur-Malekk said, firmly.  “Until he changes modes for the first time, they are all simply drawing conclusions based on his physical appearance.”

            “You have me there,” Starscream responded with a grin.  “Say—for the CNA and transfluid, does it absolutely need to be _the sire’s_?”  The Destron commander suddenly asked, peering intently into the partially open iris of the spark-casing.

            “Ah!   Now _that_ is an excellent question!”  Raj-ur-Malekk said, excitedly.  “Once the newspark is ignited—theoretically **_any_** CNA and transfluid can be added.   Why Starscream…….are you contemplating what I believe you are contemplating?”  The Quintesson biologist chuckled.

            “ _Oh yes_.  Just imagine Galvatron’s reaction when he realizes **_I_** have donated material to his offspring.  Oh……… _this_ shall truly be revenge!”  Starscream chuckled, deviously.  “Please be sure to record this………I want to drive that blade deep into his fuel pump and Spark.”

            “ _No………… **nononononono**_!!!  _Don’t_ touch me!  **_Don’t you dare……_**!!!”  Hot Rod screamed as Starscream got up onto the examination slab, straddling the young, flame-colored mech and opening his chestplate.

            “Considering that newspark is such a _lovely_ shade of red-violet—I feel that I simply should give it some of my own Sparklight, to enhance its beautiful hue,” Starscream purred seductively, leaning forwards over the flame-colored mech.

            Hot Rod wailed in ultimate despair as the foreign Sparklight touched his own Spark and that of the newspark………….

 

*       *      *       *      *

 

            “ _What the_ ……?!”  Galvatron  snapped as he got a message ping, directly.

            **|I mailed you a beautiful little film, be sure to watch it soon.|**   Starscream’s glyph message read as it flashed up on Galvatron’s HUD.

            “What’s wrong, Galvatron?”  Optimus Prime asked, concerned.

            “That _bastard_ Starscream just sent me a personal video recording—I’ll need a few moments to download it for viewing,” the Decepticon Leader snarled.

            Galvatron’s flagship was comprised of an attack force of both Decepticons and Autobots.  At the most current moment, Ultra Magnus (a _brilliant_ tactician, Galvatron had to admit) had been laying out some plans for an assault.  And, just as soon as Ravage and Ratbat could confirm the location of the planet Starscream was using for a base—they would go instantly there and get Hot Rod back.  And Galvatron would _make Starscream pay_ for kidnapping his little Prime in the first place!

            The group in the room was rather small…….Galvatron, Optimus Prime, Ultra Magnus, Cyclonus, Hot Spot and Onslaught.  The remainders of the assault forces were doing their own personal preparations elsewhere on the ship.  Galvatron had specifically requested the gestalt of the Protectobots, because he wanted First Aid to be there when they got Hot Rod back.

            The video had finally downloaded, so then Galvatron yanked out a dataport connector from his left hip and plugged it into the console in the table in front of them.  There was a screen and computer system built into the table.  At first, the video started out a little blurry when it began playing, but then it seemed to focus up and showed the setting to be some kind of medical bay or laboratory.  And then the camera went directly to Starscream’s face.

 

 

_“Ah, there we go— **all focused now**.  Galvatron—first of all, I have to applaud your choice of a **frag-toy** ,” Starscream chuckled, grinning devilishly at the camera.  “Once you get the little brat-bot aroused…….he **really wants it** , doesn’t he?  Though, I suspect right now a lot of it has to do with his desperate carrier protocols.”_

_The camera panned down and showed Starscream straddling Hot Rod—and pretty enthusiastically interfacing with him._

_“Though I suspect I **may have broken him** when I gave him some of my Sparklight,” Starscream laughed, reaching down and indulgently stroking Hot Rod’s hard spike.  “Did you know that your newspark is red-violet?  **How adorable!**    Of course, I just **had** to give it some of my own Sparklight…….since that happens to be the very color of my own Spark!”_

 

 

            Galvatron roared in fury, his hands going to the edge of the table, as if he were going to flip it or crush it.  But then he focused back on the video playing on the monitor in the table………

 

 

_“I hope you like this little gift, from me to you………..dearest Galvatron.  I’m going to give you back a broken frag-toy and corrupted spawn— **that way you will never, ever be able to forget me ever again** ,” Starscream chortled, amused when the barely-conscious Hot Rod beneath him overloaded, crying and whimpering wordlessly.  “You may want to hurry and come and find me………the longer you linger, the more CNA and transfluid I’ll be giving to your newspark.  And the more pleasure I’ll take with your precious little Hot Rod,” the Destron commander laughed._

 

 

            “ _Hot Rod_ ……..” Ultra Magnus murmured, horrified at what he’d just watched on the screen.  As well as that very dead look in the dimmed blue-glass covered optics.

            “With his anxiety issues and low sense of self-worth—even if we do save his body, he may _never_ be alive inside, ever again,” Hot Spot said, steepling his servos on the table in front of him.

            A low rumble began in Galvatron’s engines before the growling snarl began erupting from his vocalizer.   Like the commander of the Protectobots just said, the Decepticon Leader was well-aware that his young Prime had those anxiety and self-worth issues.   And he had also noted the emptiness in Hot Rod’s dim optics.

            Had Galvatron lost his greatest treasure, even _before_ he could get Hot Rod back?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So, Starscream's assault force--if you didn't catch it from Liokaiser last chapter--is the Breastforce from "Transformers: Victory". The name a lot of fans like to make fun of, but the reason for it is the chest-piece addition (akin to the Powermaster technology function). Despite the names of the Breastforce.......having animal-themed names........not a single one of them transform into beasts. Their chest-piece add-ons are what have a beast-form, plus their helms have beast-shapes to them.............but each and every one of their alt modes are vehicles (aerial or ground types). :)


	5. Chapter 5

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Galvatron ponders.........a whole lot of things.........while being forced to wait until they can find Starscream's base of operations.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A very short chapter, with a very big focus on Galvatron. :)

_ Chapter Five: _

 

            They _still_ had not received any messages from Ratbat or Ravage yet, with planetary coordinates or anything at all.   It was beginning to worry Galvatron—they _couldn’t_ go anywhere specific without knowing more information than they did at the moment.   Soundwave had begun to think that there was a communications interference wherever Starscream was—hence the reason Galvatron had not received any personal message pings from Hot Rod.   So the Decepticons' communications’ officer was attempting to make contact with his cassette spies in other ways.

            And Galvatron was doing his best **_not_** to go into a rage—if he lost it right now, he would simply lay waste to anything in his path as he scoured the universe aimlessly looking for Starscream’s base of operations.   And _that_ would do nothing.  It _wouldn’t_ rescue Hot Rod, it _wouldn’t_ make Starscream pay……….and it _certainly wouldn’t_ abate Galvatron’s anger.   Galvatron wasn’t even in the mood to rage-frag Cyclonus or Scourge.

            Instead, he sequestered himself in his private quarters—after all, this was _his flagship_ —and assigned Cyclonus to guard the room and not to allow anyone in whatsoever.   And then Galvatron sat on the edge of his berth and contemplated everything that had led to this situation—trying to pick apart any clue that could get him to find Starscream faster.   Every moment he was forced to wait…………the former Decepticon was destroying Galvatron’s most precious treasure even further.

            **_Nothing._**    He could find _nothing_ , as he replayed the kidnapping and Starscream’s vulgar video in his mind.

            Scourge had asked why Galvatron was even getting so bent out of shape over a tiny Autobot.   And _at the time_ , the Decepticon Leader nearly blasted a hole through him—as well as in the wall of the room on the ship— _just for saying that_.   And though Cyclonus did not say it aloud—Galvatron could sense that his Second-in-Command was thinking the _exact same thing_.   He knew Cyclonus never approved of his relationship with Rodimus Prime—and certainly **_not_** with Hot Rod!—but he never made mention of his disapproval.   It showed that Cyclonus could accept even what he could not understand—and the Emperor of the Decepticons treasured his lieutenant for that.

            But once that very fact had been brought up—it made the question very loud inside of Galvatron’s head.    ** _Why_** was he doing all of this for one little Autobot?   **_Why_** did he claim that flame-colored mech as one of his greatest treasures?    Was it because the Autobot had borne him spawn………..their Novablaze?   And this new potential for a second spawn?   Because only _they_ could do it _together_ ………was that why?

            The Decepticon Leader grumbled under his breath and shook his head.   The answer to this was _not_ easy at all—not for someone like him, who blasted and blazed through everything in his path……..whether that was a physical path or his path in life.

            Rodimus Prime’s first time—taken on that deserted world.   The first time Galvatron saw how fractured the young Autobot Leader really was………..the way the flame-colored mech clung to him so desperately, even as Galvatron’s violent interfacing surely brought the Autobot _nothing but pain_.   Galvatron had **_never_** been wanted like that before………….he’d never been needed the way his young Prime _so desperately_ needed him, even though it began with violence and pain.   It was **_different_** than the way Cyclonus, Scourge and the Sweeps needed him………….it made Galvatron long for something he could not define.  

            And in the end, he claimed— _and kept claiming_ —the flame-colored mech, because he didn’t know how to express the longing he felt deep inside of him.   As long as the Autobot was at his side—even if distance separated them sometimes—he _did not_ feel that strange longing within him.   The way Rodimus Prime…………and now as he was known as Hot Rod………….clung to him as they interfaced……..smiled up at him when the mood was good………….laughed both with and at Galvatron (the latter incensing him for a rough night of fragging).   His Prime was **_irreplaceable_** ……..and a universe without his Prime would feel very empty.

            He remembered a night—long past at this moment—back when his Prime still carried the Matrix and after Novablaze had been born.   When they had been apart and yet strangely “ _still together_ ”.   Rodimus Prime had come for a visit to Chaar, he’d revamped the Decepticon Leader’s rooms and the berth……..and had stayed for a couple of days, claiming Novablaze was safe and being “ _babysat_ ” back on Earth.

 

_“So, tell me **honestly** ……….what do you want to do when you’re done conquering the universe?”  Rodimus Prime said, laughing at Galvatron’s little tirade about how he’d conquer **everything**._

_“I………..will have fulfilled my all desires and purpose!   What more do I need?!”  Galvatron snapped, a bit annoyed with his Prime for starting such a **stupid** conversation._

_“It’s not what you **need** , Galvatron………….it’s **what will you do**?”  Rodimus said, snuggling closer and brushing a grey servo lightly over the Decepticon band on his lover’s chest._

_Galvatron couldn’t find an answer for his Prime.  Several times he’d started to say something, but it simply didn’t sound right.   Conquering was all he had ever known and desired—once it was all conquered………. **what then**?   The Decepticon Leader **did not** know what would happen then._

_“ **I** can help you with that.   I can find a way to expand your desires and purpose for you—so that once you have conquered, you can **still** live on with contentment and pleasure,” Rodimus said, a soft and warm tone in his vocalizer.   “ **First** —the universe does not need to be entirely conquered by you.  What you **need to conquer** is only what you are able to rule.”_

_“What if it is **not enough**?”  Galvatron muttered, a pouting tone in his vocalizer._

_“It **will** be.  Because after you have conquered only what you can rule— **then you must rule it**.  You must set forth your ideals and your rules for living under your empire.   You must set up paths of trade and association with others, so that you may acquire resources that your empire does not have.  You must look towards the future of your empire, when even **your** amazing body will one day weaken and fade away,” Rodimus Prime answered._

_“ **I am Galvatron—I will never die!** ”  The grey-and-purple mech snarled._

_“Yes, you are **Galvatron** ……….but you are **not immortal**.  Even that one you dislike me speaking of was not immortal, **he died** , too—remember?   So, **then** what happens to your empire when you are gone?”  Rodimus asked, nuzzling Galvatron’s neck fondly._

_Galvatron paused and considered that.  “I……..have our Novablaze, do I not? **He** can carry on my will……..” he trailed off, trying to think of the universe without him—his very empire without him._

_“And **after** Nova?”  The flame-colored mech asked, curiously.  “We **are** long-lived, but not eternal.   You must set the rules so that your empire flourishes beyond **your existence** ……….and even beyond **Nova’s** existence.   Nova **may** have inherited our ability to produce life, it’s certainly a possibility………..but there is no one for him to produce life with.  Maybe Cyclonus or Scourge or the Sweeps—but would **they** outlive you?  And would **they** want to try producing offspring with Nova?”_

_“ **Why** are you making me think so hard about this?   **It is foolish**!”  Galvatron growled.   The Decepticon Leader lived only in the “ **now** ”—he lived **in the moment**.   But his treasured Prime was not wrong in thinking about the future, which would come whether Galvatron wanted it or not.   “ **Ah** , this is why I have **you** —is it not?  **You and Cyclonus** —to do the things for me that I do not understand and cannot comprehend!”  Galvatron laughed, grabbing the flame-colored mech’s aft and digging his claws in as he turned to his treasure.  “ **Yes!**    This is **exactly** why I have the both of you around!”  He purred as his Prime gazed into his optics and smiled warmly.  “ **No more talking** —the only sounds I wish to hear from your vocalizer now are grunts and cries………..and perhaps you screaming my name as I make you overload!”  The grey-and-purple mech chuckled._

_Rodimus Prime grinned and opened for him._

 

            What would his universe be like without his Prime—to do all those things that Galvatron did not understand?  His brief life freed from Unicron and _before_ he claimed his Prime………..he tried to remember those brief days.  Roaring at all the Decepticons—those mechs so hungry and scrabbling, muttering curses when his back was turned………obeying just because they couldn’t do anything else.  Landing on a planet and messing with it— _just because he could_. 

            Day in and day out, this _same_ struggle—looking for planets to plunder, to find Energon to keep himself going.  Cyclonus rationing out the remainder of any acquired Energon for the starving masses of his Decepticon army.  He never realized how _useless_ that all was back then, because after he forged the accords with Rodimus Prime………the Decepticons were no longer squabbling with one another.  They no longer cursed him.   They…………were _happy_ now.   He heard them laughing, telling tall tales of the past.  Berthing lovers for pleasure……..and not just for a warm body at recharge.

            _His Prime did all that_ —brought all that wealth and treasure to his Decepticon Empire.   In the name of this “ _love_ ” thing, he called it.  He did _all that_ because he loved Galvatron and wanted to make him greater.  Even in his original frame now, smaller and not as strong as before—he still continued to work and make Galvatron’s empire greater, _all without compromising his ideals as an Autobot_.

            And if Galvatron turned back now………?  Did not go after Hot Rod……..?  Leaving the small, flame-colored mech to this horrible fate at Starscream’s servos……..?

            _The accords would be broken_.  The ceasefire accords that his Prime worked so hard at applying and supporting—and enhancing!  The Autobots would **_never_** support them if Galvatron let Hot Rod die or be tortured unto death.   Yes, Galvatron still had the glorious things his Prime had already given him, such as the energy conversion platform and the habitation buildings on Chaar……….but he’d **_never_** have anything more than what he had right now.  And without his Prime—all that glory would tarnish and become broken when war started up again.   Without his Prime, he had _only_ Cyclonus and Scourge to take to berth when he wanted to frag, the other Decepticons stayed far out of his way and he had no interest in them to begin with—which was an act that Scourge actually hated and Cyclonus would be happy to serve Galvatron in any way………but it would lose that variety that his little Prime brought to the mix, with his fire and passion.

            If Galvatron _did not_ save his treasured little Prime, his universe would become dark and small once more………..

            A sharp rap of knuckles sounded on the door to his quarters.  “Lord Galvatron—the Autobot Leader has asked to speak with you.  I feel that this time what he has to say is very important,” Cyclonus’ voice filtered through the door.

            “Very well,” Galvatron said with a deep sigh.  “ _Enter_.”

            Optimus Prime came in and looked around for a chair.  He dragged it over to where Galvatron was sitting on his berth.  The silence dragged out for far too long and Galvatron let out a low growl, beginning to raise the arm with the nova cannon on it.

            “Easy there, Galvatron.   I have been contemplating Ultra Magnus’ plan and our individual parts in it.  I think I _may_ be able to find Hot Rod, once we get to Starscream’s location,” the red-white-blue mech said, a soft chuckle in his voice.

            “You can?  _How_?”  Galvatron asked, suspiciously.

            Optimus opened his chestplate and pulled the Matrix of Leadership out of it.  The last time Galvatron saw that object, it had been empty and dark in the Autobot Leader’s servos.   And to Galvatron, it was something that should’ve _always_ belonged to no one else but **_his Prime_**.   As the Decepticon Leader looked at it now, it was glowing softly.

            “It…….has regained the power it once had?”  Galvatron inquired, his voice even and calm, even though he was annoyed.

            “Only a _fraction_ of it,” Optimus explained.  “But I think it’s just enough that will let me find Hot Rod once we get to Starscream’s base.   He once carried the Matrix and some of his Sparklight still exists within the Matrix—I _think_ I can find him using that bond.”

            “ _Hmmmm_ …….” Galvatron murmured.

            “You and I both know that Starscream won’t stick around if he perceives that he’s losing.  If you hope to make him pay, then you _can’t_ focus on looking for Hot Rod and attacking Starscream at the same time,” the Autobot Leader said, firmly.

            “This is true,” the grey-and-purple mech responded.  “ _Very well_.  I shall leave the rescue of my Prime to you.  Be certain that you do not fail!”  Galvatron growled softly.   He was about to make another pronouncement when Soundwave’s voice boomed over the intercom that he had coordinates _finally_ —even as a glyph message pinged and popped up on Galvatron’s HUD.

 

**|I am so sorry, my Emperor.  I’ve failed you……..|**

            Galvatron paused.   _What did that mean?_    Was Hot Rod **_dead_**?   He roared with fury, raging and raising his nova cannon, charging it up to blast everything around him.   But before he set loose the blast, he looked at the time-stamp on the glyph message—it was sent **_before_** Starscream’s vulgar video had been shot and sent.

            That meant there was indeed a communications block that had finally been broken.

            He _still_ had a chance to save his Prime.  A least—he **_hoped_** he still had a chance to save Hot Rod……….


	6. Chapter 6

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The confrontation with Starscream.........a few surprises...........and will Hot Rod be rescued?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Last chapter of this particular story.............sorry [not sorry] about that ending............ *shy laugh*
> 
> Next story is in the works, with a working title of "The Breaking Storm". :)

_ Chapter Six: _

 

            “Well, to be honest—we _did_ pretty much get all the data you wanted, though,” Starscream chuckled. 

            “It’s true.  We found out that Spark-bonding can ignite the creation process—that’s what we were missing all along in the design plans,” Raj-ur-Malekk responded.  “I know you wanted to try and mess with Galvatron’s new offspring even more, but it seems that Hot Rod instinctively thwarted you from giving more than that initial Sparklight.”

            “Yes, he closed off his spark-casing entirely—but _that_ is not exactly healthy for our kind either,” Starscream responded.   He was going through a bunch of systems, checking and double-checking things.  “I did give a lot more transfluid, though—Hot Rod _couldn’t_ thwart me on that, his carrier protocols wouldn’t let him refuse transfluid.   So, I guess I added to whatever the newspark’s frame is going to be.  I appreciate you going along with my seemingly reckless plan………..and the fact that Galvatron’s going to lay waste to this planetoid of yours.”

            “Why are you letting that little mech live?   I’ve gotten everything **_I_** wanted from him and I can postulate the birth and formative years,” the Quintesson biologist said.

            “ _Revenge_ ,” Starscream said, turning to his partner and leaning leisurely on the console.  “Now that I’ve done all that I’ve done to Hot Rod and the newspark—Galvatron will _never_ be able to look at either of them without fury at me igniting his systems.  If Galvatron can’t bear looking at either of them anymore without thinking of me—he’ll _probably_ kill them both.  Perfect revenge either way,” the Destron commander chuckled.

            “You really _are_ a monster, aren’t you?  I suppose that’s why we’re a good team then,” Raj-ur-Malekk said with a wave of a few tentacles.  “Well, this was one of my older research bases.  I have better ones out there.  When you’re as old as I am and research as many topics as I do—it’s beneficial to have multiple bases to do research from.”

            “I think that the next stage of our plan will work well……….have we done some preliminary starter tests yet?”  The grey-blue-red mech asked, grinning at his partner.

            “If the rumbles haven’t been a good clue on things,” Raj-ur-Malekk chuckled.  “We should be ready by the time Galvatron’s forces get here.”

            “ _Good_.”  Starscream walked over to the doors of the control center’s room.  “I’m going to go check in on Hot Rod, though I think I’m done messing around with him,” he said with a soft chuckle.  The former Decepticon walked down to the cellblock and groaned softly to himself when he saw Hellbat trying to get into Hot Rod’s cell.  It was a good thing he had Leozak change the codes constantly.  “ _Move, idiot_.  If you have nothing else to do, I’ll find something for you to do right now.”

            “Oh, _uh_ ………..commander!   I was just checking to make sure the prisoner wasn’t dead.  You know, things like that,” Hellbat said, backing immediately away.   “If you’re……. _uh_ , you know…… _tired_ ……….. ** _I_** could frag him for you.  That’d be all right, wouldn’t it?  You could watch!”  The grey-and-blue mech said, excitedly.

            “So eager to do that!   But, no…….I am done messing around with the brat-bot.  As soon as Galvatron gets here, he’ll have a lovely little package to pick up,” Starscream chuckled.  “ _You_ need to leave the cellblock, Hellbat—I want you to go sweep up the commissary, since you’re not busy enough.”

            “Oh.   Yes, commander,” the grey-and-blue mech sighed, dragging himself out of the cellblock area.

            Starscream shook his head, waiting for the mech to leave before he opened Hot Rod’s cell.  Then he walked in and looked down at the flame-colored mech.   The way Hot Rod was curled on the cot, he was protecting his chestplate—trying to keep anyone from touching it.   At least Leozak had done as Starscream asked and cleaned the young Autobot……….even polished the little brat-bot up.   At least he’d make a pretty package for Galvatron to pick up.

            “Your crazy lover should be here soon, Hot Rod.  Think you’ll be ready for him?”  Starscream chuckled, seeing the blue glass-covered optics dimly glow.

            Hot Rod curled into himself even more, protecting his chestplate as much as he could with his arms and legs manacled to the cot.   Starscream had to admit, it would be amusing to frag him one more time and leave him a sloppy mess for when Galvatron found him, but most likely the Decepticon Leader would have someone else look for Hot Rod, so he could focus on getting revenge on Starscream.  Even though the brat-bot was broken……..he _still_ did all he could to protect the newspark.

            Hot Rod _couldn’t_ prevent the first time—and the newspark must’ve thought _Galvatron_ was there when Starscream shared his Sparklight.  But it likely felt the difference in Starscream’s light over Galvatron’s and had rushed back into Hot Rod’s spark-casing as quickly as it could— _after that_ , Hot Rod’s spark-casing had closed up completely, not even a pinprick of light shone from where the iris was.   So, Starscream knew that the initial offering of Sparklight was all he was going to be able to give to the newspark.  But even a sliver of foreign CNA could completely alter the genetic makeup of the newspark.  The transfluid was a different matter—he was able to offer quite a bit.  Hot Rod apparently couldn’t stop his interface array from following the carrier protocols and the necessity for transfluid for the newspark’s frame.

            Starscream wondered if Hot Rod would suffer Spark damage if his spark-casing stayed closed up for too long?  Their kind was not supposed to keep the spark-casing completely closed for long lengths of time, because it meant Sparklight could wind up damaging its own Spark.   And a Spark like Hot Rod’s…….so very bright and brilliant—Spark damage would probably happen faster.   Though Starscream supposed the spark-casing’s iris **_may_** have opened back up when Hot Rod knew he was in his cell again and would be left alone.   He didn’t actually want Hot Rod to die—because he was supposed to be something Galvatron would look at every day from now on and rage at Starscream………..and if the brat-bot died, he wanted Galvatron to do it himself, with his own bare hands.

            “Well, Hot Rod……….if I know Galvatron in any way—if he’s got _even an ounce_ of Megatron left within him—he should be here soon, now that we’ve allowed his spies to transmit location coordinates,” Starscream said.  “It should be _fun_.  I’m a bit excited to try out the strength of my new frame against him.  Plus, I have a few surprises.   But we won’t linger and fight for too long, of course.   The whole point of this is to show Galvatron he _won’t_ be rid of me, _ever again_.”

            Though broken and listless……..for a brief, _very brief_ moment……...Hot Rod glared at Starscream furiously.

            “Looks like you may have a _little_ bit of spirit left,” Starscream chuckled.  “It’s too bad you’re an Autobot—you would have made a wonderful Destron.”

 

*      *      *      *      *

 

            “ _Decepticons……… **attack**_!”  Galvatron roared in fury.  He just figured the Autobots would follow suit, because of Ultra Magnus’ assault plan.   Galvatron himself followed _no plan_ and his only goal was that infuriatingly grinning former Second-in-Command of his……..!   “ _Starscream……..I will rip out your Spark and crush it in my own hands_!”

            “ _Awww_.  You always say the sweetest things, Galvatron!”  Starscream laughed.  He never even flinched as Galvatron landed directly in front of him.  “Thank you so much for visiting…….. _ah-ha-ha, whoops_!”  He chuckled, leaping back as the infuriated mech lunged forwards at him.  “You _always were_ a bit big and clumsy, even back as Megatron,” he chuckled, waggling a finger at Galvatron.

            Galvatron bared his fangs in fury.  But Starscream was right—he was letting his emotions override all of his control.  And he would never even be able to touch Starscream if he didn’t focus.  Starscream wasn’t a power-fighter before……….he was a stealth-fighter.  He used his speed and agility against his opponents.   But something was different about Starscream’s new frame—it seemed _heavier_.   He didn’t seem to move as fast as before…….

            “I do find it highly amusing that out of everything you’ve forgotten, you do remember **_me_** _‘Mighty Megatron’_ ,” Starscream laughed, warmly.   “Did I wedge myself into your Spark so deep that Unicron’s reformatting and the plasma pools on Thrull couldn’t even let you forget about me?   Well, I did make sure that you wouldn’t ever be able to forget me until the end of eternity.  Your plaything and your spawn will forever be tainted with _my marks_ ……….”

            Galvatron roared and grabbed Starscream roughly by the neck fairing.  “Why must you play these games, Starscream?   _Are you jealous?_   Perhaps you should’ve just consented to remaining as a consort than trying to take it all for yourself!”  He snarled.   He didn’t understand it, but he _always_ remembered Starscream—even though he remembered nothing of his previous life, he remembered this mech.  He remembered Starscream and he **_hated_** that he remembered Starscream.

            “As rough as always, _lover_ ,” Starscream purred. 

            Which made Galvatron throw him into the wall.   He felt his internals rattle, but Starscream was used to things like this and his new frame didn’t feel pain as his old frame would have.

            “I can see why you’d covet the little brat-bot, though.  That Spark of his is _something else_ ,” Starscream chuckled, rushing forwards to meet Galvatron’s next charge and stopping him by grabbing the shoulder pillars.

            “ _That’s mine_.  **_MINE_**!!!”  Galvatron growled, twisting his arm to nudge the nova cannon against Starscream’s chest.

            “ _Why_ though?   Why are you so obsessed with this little brat-bot?   This is what’s confused me,” Starscream said, twisting his body and the plasma shot went past him, striking a table.   “You _never_ became attached to anything whatsoever.  **_Never_**.  Why this little brat-bot……..why has **_he_** been the one to finally capture your wild Spark and program?”  Starscream twisted their bodies and flung Galvatron into the wall, his nova cannon getting knocked loose from his arm as he slid to the ground, shaking his head.

            How was Starscream _this strong_?   It must be the Quintesson allies he had………..

            Starscream slammed a boot into Galvatron’s chest and aimed one of his wristweapons down at the Decepticon Leader.  “You always taught me to not get attached.  _Attachment is weakness_.   And here you are—attached to a ridiculous little mech with bright colors,” the Destron commander snapped.   “You have become **_weak_** , Megatron—becoming Galvatron _did not_ make you stronger, it made you _weaker_!”   He growled.

            Galvatron felt his engines rumble at a dangerous intensity.  _Weak? **HIM**?!_    _Never_ , that was impossible!   His Prime _did not_ make him weak…………his Prime made things _better_.   Galvatron did not change because of his Prime— _he became better_.   A strangely familiar voice echoed in his head and a memory he never remembered before ghosted across his processor.

 

_“ **Never** get attached, Starscream.  **Attachments make you weak** ,” Megatron growled, grabbing Starscream around the throat.  He swung and threw the red-blue-grey mech into his berth.   “If you can Spark-bond **without** becoming attached—then you are truly a master of all you survey.”_

_“You **can’t** Spark-bond with me!   That’s something **eternal**!   It **can’t** be broken unless you die!”  Starscream whined, scrambling back into the headboard of the berth._

_“Then it shows **you are weak** , Starscream.   You clearly do not have the strength of Spark or the fortitude of program to Spark-bond and ignore it,” Megatron chortled.   “Open your chest or your array, I don’t care which……… **I’ll take either** , but I’ll know where you stand depending on which one you open.”_

 

            Dare he abandon his Prime now?   Did desiring his Prime make him weak?   _Was his past self right?_  Was giving into the attachment of Spark-bonding something that made him **_weak_**?   _But_ ………….he had been Spark-bonded to Cyclonus and Scourge and the Sweeps for far longer—he _never_ felt any special longing for those others.   But he’d _elevated_ Rodimus Prime……..Hot Rod……… _higher than them_.   That……… _that_ was attachment wasn’t it?   Was he _weak_ for that?

            **_No._**

            No…….he was _better_ for choosing his Prime.  And _he_ made his Prime better, as well.   Their bond made the both of them better.   Spark-bonding and attaching _wasn’t_ a weakness……..it was two becoming _stronger_.  It was two becoming _better_!

            “Come here, Starscream, I have a surprise for you……….” Galvatron purred, sensually.

            “Do you think I’m falling for _that_?”  Starscream growled.   And suddenly he was slammed from behind by a powerful blow.

            “Your skill and surprising stealth is greatly appreciated, Ultra Magnus,” Galvatron said, getting to his pedes and scooping up his nova cannon, to replace it on his arm where it belonged.  “Now Starscream, I think it’s time we said good-bye to one another………..” he chuckled, raising his nova cannon and aiming it at the Destron commander.

 

*      *      *      *      *

 

            Optimus Prime wove around corners and ducked past the fighting gestalts of Liokaiser, Bruticus and Defensor.  Cyclonus moved beside him just as easily—it was easy to see why he was Galvatron’s most trusted and most skillful soldier.   The purple-and-grey mech said nothing, but stuck to Optimus Prime like a shadow—as Galvatron had said to do.   Though, to the Autobot Leader—he had to wonder if Cyclonus were jealous in any way of Hot Rod.   As the red-and-blue Autobot understood it……..Galvatron took the _both_ of them to his berth at whatever whim possessed him, but never at the same time.   But maybe it was the way of the Decepticons……..to just go with your whims and not complain about what you get.

            And somehow Hot Rod understood that.   From everything Spike and Ultra Magnus had told him, about the accords and about the younger mech’s time as the Autobot Leader………the flame-colored mech tried to understand the universe from the view of the Decepticons, so he could help them better.   Optimus Prime, who had fought for centuries towards peace, he wasn’t sure he could adapt himself like the younger mech had.   And maybe they were right—he’d been at war for so long, he wasn’t able to see what peace really was like.  It was nothing like the “ _ideal of peace_ ”.

            It _wasn’t_ pretty and it _wasn’t_ perfect……….it was just trying to get along with each other and _not fighting_ anymore.  It was squabbling and bickering, but sharing the benefits that both sides could offer to each other.  It was leaving each side alone to do their own things.

            That was a strange thing to consider, but…………he would _try_ to get around to understanding it.  He’d heard the talk around Earth and Cybertron—about what would happen if Optimus skirted the accords and messed with Galvatron’s expanding of his empire.   He had even asked Ultra Magnus about why they allowed him to do it………..and the old soldier’s response had been:  “ _Rodimus—err, **Hot Rod** —doesn’t think he’ll expand further than Chaar’s planetary system.   I don’t know if he’s trying to get Galvatron to focus there or if he’s anticipating Galvatron getting bored by the time he annexes planet number twelve_.”

            But maybe it was a little of **_both_**.  Hot Rod seemed far more vocal than he had been before—stronger, more focused _and_ leader-like.  Plus, he seemed to be able to subtly persuade Galvatron onto _particular paths_ ……….making Galvatron believe he’d chosen that direction himself.   Guile and stealth……..kindness and honesty—Hot Rod seemed to be able to adapt to _what was needed_.   By the Autobots.  By the Decepticons.   By the universe at large—as given by the Galactic Alliance.   Hot Rod _knew_ how to act and react around them all.

            That made him a _better leader_ than Optimus Prime ever was.  Optimus Prime was a wartime leader…………….and peace—or at least these ceasefire accords—was going to be difficult for him to get used to.  It felt strange to be a little bit jealous of that younger mech.  Hot Rod had everything dumped on him all at once and he emerged better and stronger than before.

            “Ravage,” Optimus murmured as they came upon the robotic panther in the hallways.  The animal-like mech gave a soft little growl and jerked his head in a direction—which Optimus and Cyclonus took to understand as a “ _follow me, I know where we need to go_ ” gesture.

            The two followed the panther-mech down to the cellblocks and found Hot Rod all curled up upon himself on the cot within.

            “Looks like a standard force-shield door,” Optimus murmured.  “Cyclonus, would you be able to break the bindings if I can get the force-shield down?”  He asked.

            Cyclonus nodded succinctly and then their attention was drawn to the floor, where Ravage had drawn some glyphs.

            “ _That_ will save some time,” Optimus chuckled, inputting the glyphs into keypad.   The force shield dropped and they all went into the cell.   The Autobot Leader knelt next to the cot and tried to bring Hot Rod’s head around to look at it, but the young Autobot stubbornly kept curled in on himself.  “Hot Rod—it’s Optimus, we’re here to take you home.  Can’t you look at me to let me know you’re all right?”  He asked, softly.

            Cyclonus had less trouble with the flame-colored mech’s legs than his arms, but got them all freed and Ravage placed his forepaws on the edge of the cot and leaned over to nuzzle Hot Rod as best as he could with the young mech all curled up like he was.   That nuzzling seemed to get Hot Rod’s attention and to pull him out of whatever place he’d retreated to.

            The young, flame-colored mech uncurled his body and reached out a hand to stroke Ravage’s head, mouthing the robotic panther’s name.   He began crying soundlessly, but smiling, just cuddling and cradling Ravage’s head desperately.

            “Hot Rod………..we _need_ to go.  I’ll carry you, so Cyclonus can fight, if we run into trouble,” Optimus Prime said, firmly.  “Is that all right?  May I carry you back to the ship?”  He asked.

            Hot Rod mouthed the word “ _yes_ ” and nodded.

            That was when the trio who’d come to rescue him realized that something was wrong with the young, flame-colored mech…………..

 

*      *      *      *      *

 

            Starscream grinned deviously and got to his pedes, dusting himself off and pretending Galvatron’s nova cannon wasn’t even trained on him.  “Oh, Galvatron—it has been _a joy_ to spar with you, verbally and physically………..however, it’s time for me to go,” the Destron commander said with a laugh in his vocalizer.

            “We’re _not done_ until your body is dust, **_again_** , Starscream,” Galvatron growled, charging up his nova cannon to its fullest.

            “ _Please_.  Don’t waste your plasma energy, Galvatron.  I’m going, but I can promise you that you _haven’t_ heard the last of me,” Starscream chuckled.  “Besides, if I’m not mistaken……..there’s somebody _right there_ that might need your help—or would you rather prove to me that the brat-bot means nothing to you after all?”

            Galvatron followed Starscream’s pointing servo and saw Optimus Prime carrying Hot Rod, avoiding the battles in the area.   He was torn………..he wanted to assess the damage to his Prime, but he didn’t want to let Starscream get away!   Galvatron roared in fury, raising his cannon to the sky and let the blast go.  He spun on his pedes and ran over to the Autobot Leader who was carrying his precious Prime.

            Starscream hopped up into the air and gazed after Galvatron.   “ ** _Pfft_**.  _True love_.   What a waste of time and energy,” the Destron commander laughed.  “Come, Liokaiser!   It’s time to go!”

            All of the sudden, the planet seemed to shake like a massive earthquake had hit.   But then everyone looked around as the base began to split and tear and parts of it rose into the air.   _That……. **couldn’t be** ……..?_   It was a city-base structure like Metroplex, but it was green-and-purple……..!   Could that departing vessel _really_ be a city-base Transformer like Metroplex and Trypticon?!

            “If Starscream _hadn’t_ been playing around………I think we may have lost this fight,” Ultra Magnus said, catching up to the group, most of whom were staring up at the departing city-base.

            “Why won’t you speak to me, my Prime—what has happened to your voice?”  Galvatron murmured, his engines rumbling in worry.  He cradled Hot Rod in his arms and the smaller, flame-colored mech simply curled into him, crying without sound and clutching at the Decepticon he loved with all his Spark.

           

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I think "Spark-bonding" is an interesting concept that I've seen a wide variety of authors treat differently, from what I've read on this site. I'm sure someone's saying "but wait--Starscream just said a Spark-bond is eternal" (which echoes something said in a previous story if anyone remembers)..........just remember that Starscream has a brand-new Spark in this story. So, his old Spark-bond to Megatron is long since gone. ;)
> 
> Technically the same could be said for Optimus Prime. He was dead, therefore his Spark was dead--and the Matrix just reignited it. So, I'm going with the theory there that any and all Spark-bonds were dissolved when he died and his Spark is fresh with no current bonds. :)
> 
> As for Galvatron--I think he just doesn't care. And I also think part of Megatron's "Spark-bonds are unimportant" thoughts are there, too. Galvatron only cares when he wants to care. So, think of this--Megatron was always a bit calmer and logical, whereas Galvatron is energetic and emotional.
> 
> And finally--all of you guys' suggestions and a suggestion from my friend who gave me the AO3 invite, I managed to fix that repeating end-note issue. Thanks everyone! And thanks for reading this one! :D


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